Drive You Insaneby Just A Fabulous CatChaptersDejection - Prologue Deception - Chapter 2Desire - Chapter 3Discorded - Chapter 1Dejection - Prologue Dejection - Prologue Twilight Sparkle. I heard her hooves banging on my door. Her voice, so raspy and solemn. Screaming, pleading, yelling. Right behind me. Begging for me to unlock it. Let her in. She will have to break it down to get any further. And I fear she will. Does she not remember she wields magic? A unicorn can’t simply forget her horn just like that. With her alicorn powers too, she must have the strength to kick down a door easily… Or maybe she… The mere thought makes the floor whirl and I have to sit down. . ..she truly feels guilt for her actions? That’s the reason that she has forgotten how to teleport? How to buck? Why she won’t do any of those things? But after a few seconds I shake my head and laugh. No. It must be an act of hers. Well thought out, but it’s not going to work on me. Not anymore. With that I let out a long, heavy sigh, my back pressed against the seemly cold but still comforting wall. What does she think she’s doing? One minute she wanted me gone; the next minute she wants me back? Steal my love then ask for forgiveness? Isn’t she supposed to be the ‘Princess of Friendship’? Hypocrisy should be in her title. It doesn’t work like that, Twilight. Naive, backstabbing Twilight... I let my eyes close as I try to drown out the thumping sounds. But of course, peace cannot come to me today as my mind trails off to other thoughts. Rares. Brown coat. Yellow eyes. Memories of a pony and draconequus sitting under the starlight. I would do so much for him... But what does he do? He rejects me. We kiss and he treats it as if it were platonic. Since when did kisses as passionate as that become platonic? Meaningless? Thrown away as if it was a simple touch. My hooves are shaking as I crack open one eye. I notice the fidgeting and the sweat Why hadn’t I felt that? Where has my sanity gone? Why am I like this? Questions, questions, questions. The scenes. Why are they so perfectly remembered in my head? Twilight stealing my gift, claiming it to be hers.Twilight telling me that henever loved me, when I know there were sparks of something before. Twilight kissing him right in front of me, not caring as to what it would do. Why could I remember it all as if it were a mere few minutes ago? Kissing. Discord and Twilight. Twilight and Discord. Their kiss had meant something. So what happened to mine? Rarity and Discord is how it should be. I simply know that to be true. I wish I could scream. Scream as loud as my vocal cords could handle until Celestia and Luna were dead. Too much pain, too much sorrow. Rejection. Objections. All these things are useless in the long run when you’re supposed ‘best friend’ dangles the love of your life in front of you like a toy. And no matter how much you try to get it back, it’ll never be yours again. You know that too. But I still hear the banging on the door from outside, followed by two puny words. Two words that wouldn’t matter in any other case. Words twisted with sweet concern when, in reality, they were sour. “I’m… sorry.” That is it. I’m screaming on the inside. My eyelid twitches and my tail flicks. I cannot take this anymore. Lies, lies, lies, lies. I just want this to stop. My eyes are blurring of from the onslaught of tears making their way out. Scanning the room, I spot a side table with a piece of paper and a pencil on it. ...I have an idea... With my brain pounding and my tears pouring I groggily clambered up to all fours and trotted over to the table. “Rarity,” Twilight called again, “I know you’re in there. You…” she paused, but I continued my trek. “... you don’t have to accept my apology. But at least... let me tell you face to face. I-It’s all I’m asking...” I hear her sob. It sounded muffled as if her face was buried in her hooves,but it was definitely a sob. A fraction of me wants to open the door from sheer sympathy, but the rest of me still despises what she did. What she's doing. No forgiveness for the wicked. I ignored her as I picked up the pencil with my magic and began to write furiously. No sitting, no thinking, no anything. Just writing whatever thoughts popped into my brain as I became lost in the moment. I did not care about making my handwriting as elegant as I usually do; I did not care about being polite; I did not care that I was close to breaking the table itself as it shook under the pressure of my green aura. She, the pony that hurt me throughout the years, should be thankful that I am writing this because I did not care if they found this note. Once I finished shaping the ink to loathe I tossed it to the side. Gathering a rolled bundle of fabric with quick flares of spells, I then chopped away carelessly at it with a pair of scissors from the ground. It wasn’t meant to be beautiful. It wasn’t meant to be anything but a hashed piece of fabric born from my vexation and whole-hearted rage. By the time when beads of sweat mixed with my tears and fell to the ground, I let out a wail and slumped to the ground, fabric coming with me. I was sobbing, weeping, letting my dejection go. I was broken down to nothing and wasn’t afraid to show it. When I am able to reopen my eyes-barely noticing they were closed before-I saw the rolled up fabric on the floor. Seeing as I have nothing to lose, I levitate it up into the air, unrolling it to reveal five letters arranged to make the one word looming in the back of my mind for some time now. Death. I had cut out the word death. Big, bright, lustrous letters in gold,speaking that which I cannot utter. Needed. Craved. Silence. I noticed this just as quickly as it had come. No more banging; no mare yelling. “...Rarity, I’m coming in.” No. This was the one thing she couldn’t ruin. My body shook as I pushed myself up. I yelled back,”H-Hold on! I… I need to get ready.” Another silence. “O…” I heard her clear her throat. “Okay. But if you don’t say anything in the next five minutes, I-I’m coming in!” I nodded, even though I knew she couldn’t see me. Five minutes… might as well work while I have time. My movements were clumsy and uncoordinated, but it didn’t matter. My master plan was coming to me as the seconds flew by, and I needed to make it real. Revenge: A word has never been so bittersweet to me before. I found rope. Heaven knows why I have it, but I do. Looking over to the shelf, I retrieved it from where it was placed with breakneck spurts of emerald light then dragging a chair over to me, tying it around the leg. I proceeded to grab it by the other end and lead it to the doorknob where I secured it in equally fast flashes of white and green. “Three minutes, Rarity.” My heart was pounding like a caged animal. This had to work or it was all over. Retrieving a second piece, I looked up to a small metal hook on the ceiling. It used to hang a small birdhouse for a cockatiel I had long ago, but when it passed away, the old thing completely slipped my mind. Until now. Lifting the beige rope up carefully this time, I slowly fastened it around the steel rod, before harshly tugging on it with all my might. And, to my utmost glee, it didn’t budge. Perfect for the job needed to be done. “One minute, Rarity. I don’t have to do this. Just let me in!” her words were growing more desperate as time passed. “I… I just need some more time! Please, Twilight!” Her name was bile on my tongue, and I forced down the urge to gag. To speak so kindly, when in reality her soul was more foul than Sombra’s own, or even the black magic that had made up Nightmare Moon. Friendship. She’d feigned it all these years, if she was to push me in the mud when I needed a helping hoof. Then to take advantage of my hard work was what had really crossed the line. And to drive me to this… To drive me insane. Before I knew it, I was standing on the chair, looking at the special kind of noose before me. I was crying. So hard. For all the memories tainted with a false sense of happiness. It slipped over my neck in an almost too perfect way. “I’m coming in, Rarity!” “Wait!” There was a pause before a small click of a lock could be heard. “C-Come in.” Deception - Chapter 2I had my back and my head firmly resting against the door, trying to ignore the clingy, sticky feeling of my tears on my foreleg’s coat. Breathing rough, wings twitching and heart pounding, I counted each second as they went by, hoping for an answer from inside the building. Nothing. Only a minute remained. One, two, three, four… Time was my greatest enemy for that moment, but it flew by so fast. Fifty-nine, sixty. Time was up. I forced my rigid body to lift itself off the rough wood, and I placed my forehooves down before myself, using my back legs to thrust up into a standing position. Grueling, I then turned around to the face the door, straightening my posture and puffing my chest in an attempt to boost my own dwindling confidence. “I’m coming in, Rarity!” “Wait!” I paused, realizing my horn had flared up and I was about to burst the door down. Ears perked to listen for a reply, I heard muffled sounds of something moving before there was a sharp click. “C-Come in.” I looked to the lavender doorknob before me, begging to be pushed open. To show me if all the nasty things I’d thought, done and said were to take their tolls. How ironic, I thought, the same color as me… It almost taunted me with the way it sat there patiently. I could even see a familiar grey face looking back at me in it.Taking a deep breath, my magenta aura wrapped around it slowly. I savored each moment, for it was familiar. The inside of the boutique, however, was unknown territory now. Eventually, I found myself nearly levitating the door and had to stop. No more procrastination. Jostling around with the handle for a few seconds to make sure it was unlocked, my muscles tensed as I shoved the door open with all my might. It sideswiped into the wall, and there was the sound of something striking the ground. My eyes were closed. I wasn’t prepared for what I was going to see. But with the sheer force of my will, they opened. Creaking. The slow creak of something hanging gently swaying from side to side in the air. Creak. Creak. Creak. Rope. White. Purple. Death. My pupils were diminutive. The tears built in the corners of my eyes and cascaded down to the floor. Drop, drop, drop. Creak, creak, creak. My legs turned to nothing, and I was practically razed to the floor. The world around me became a blur of color. Dead, dead, dead. Rarity was dead. I closed my eyes to try to stop the onslaught of salty bitterness, but it was to no avail. Out the tears came like a sea of regrets, never ending and more painful by the second. Seconds. Why did I waste them? Why didn’t I barge in to stop her before it escalated too far? I didn’t know. I forced my eyes open again, only to cover them with my hooves. I let my wings droop off from my sides and I kicked out my hind-legs. I don’t know why I did those things, but I did. Then it kept on going. My tail swished from side to side, I bit my lip as I continued to bawl, I kept on blinking in the blackness that my hooves provided. Denial. Was this it? Or was I simply going mad? A sob escaped my lips and my forelegs moved away. I opened my eyes. A letter. A small piece of paper with a large signature on it that could only be hers. Rarity’s. Impulsively I snatched it with my magic and levitated to my eyes, barely able to make out one paragraph as my tears continued to make their way out. You did this. If not for you, Discord and I would no doubt be happily content with each other's embrace. But you had to drive a wedge between the locks of our arms and the touch of our lips. You, for all your intelligence, who could not have been ignorant of my feelings for him, pushed me away. Now I shall I act, in turn, of what you have done to me. As I have tied your hoof to death from which I am now suspended, so I will tie your happiness to guilt. You will no longer love Discord knowing that my life was the price. --- There is nothing better than getting a massage in the morning. I would not have survived to this day if Aloe Vera and Lotus had not started their establishment. It was always the perfect ideal place to calm my troubles away; to throw away my thoughts about Sweetie Belle being a nuisance as I had a mud bath, to relieve myself of the stress I possessed from pulling an all-nighter designing the next best thing, and more recently, to empty my frustration from Discord addressing me by ‘the name that shall never be spoken’ as I had a gentle massage. A massage that was undertaken by the twins. “You seem to be taking more massages recently,” Lotus was in the process of applying a handful of hot oil on my back while Aloe loosened my shoulders. “Discord’s still messing with you?” “You have no idea,” I spilled a scoff. “I still don’t think it’s that bad,” Aloe Vera voiced as she moved to lightly combing my ears with a brush, “he’s just having fun with you.” “I don’t want him to have fun with me by calling me that!” “If you don’t mind me asking, why do you hate that name?” The name ‘Rares’ has been common with me since my school days. Back then I was not really popular. While everypony went off to have fun during recess I would always retire to a table and draw on a notebook paper. I would draw a variety of ideas from clothing articles to aristocratic interior designs. At field trips, when others wore either a tie or a scarf or a hat, instead I would prefer to wear a cotton frock. And I did. Sadly my use of extravagant garments were not that all able to capture the awed eyes of my classmates. There were always the pointed hooves and the tones of laughter. But that was just the beginning. . . It was Hearts and Hooves day. Everyone was busy scribbling notes into cards and giving them to others who they would dream to be their special someponies. That afternoon after recess I discovered a card. A card that laid on my desk. It was different from the other cards that my classmates made. Others presented their cards exposed. This one was enveloped in what looked to be cotton paper. And the differences did not stop there. The conventional cards had either funny doodles or glitter, which in my opinion ruins the elegance and simplicity, that were drawn with at most half effort. On my card, however, there lay a heart with the name Rares, written and drawn. I know that this design is used a lot, but, by the markings, the design was made using a quill and ink. The heart was symmetrical in each angle and proportion of view. The name ‘Rares’ was written in a penmanship that I could only judge as ‘true effort, skill, and desire. Upon flipping the cover I could only do all but let out a small gasp. The average card done by my fellow classmates either held the text ‘Will you be my special somepony’ or simple remarks like ‘I really like you a lot’ or even uncouth remarks such as ‘You look smokin’ hot.’ This was what I expected as I opened my card but I was truly mistaken. My card did not hold any of those simple messages, but a short poem. I still recall it as clear as day: A little walk in the park and ICan not help butImagine you walkingTalkingLaughingby my sideI yearned to request a day ‘Just a day’ I would sayWith youBut I would fail before the onsetThe words playing in my headSeemingly authenticTaunting me‘With you? Of all people? My my’You would presumably regard me as panickyA worthless bundle of unnatural nervesAnd. . . I would not attributeAs you would be nothing short of The nail set with one strike of…A malletBut I could not put off this eventEven when it is my knowledge that you accepting meMay only be my dreamA surreal pipe dreamBut I desire to grasp at that dreamThat minute fraction of determinationAs I sit on the old stone park bench While the vision of your faceYour smileYour eyesAnd the sound of your beating heartWhile that vision sticks likeA broken recordBut stuck on the piece of the record that I consider DivineI can not hide inside the dark closet while you, you, shine brightly outside in a radiant lightthat overpowers even the SunAnymore. . .Therefore I humbly beseech,May I have the privilegeOf your presence with me For one day In the park as a start?Rares? Your Admirer Novella His real name was Novella, but he was nicknamed by everyone else as ‘Sandpaper’ since his early days in his childhood. Only a few knew of his genuine name; those few being his small family and me. No one else knew, such is the reason, thankfully, he was not ridiculed when it was snatched from my aura grasp and read, aloud may I add, by a group of foals. As they read the pointing hooves and the tones of laughter increased tenfold. All except one colt. He was pale with yellow irises and shaking hooves as he viewed the mocking spectacle. As stinging tears poured I pushed two of the foals as I ran. I was not aiming for a particular destination, the foals I shoved were the last people, no creatures, on my mind. I just ran while the card was left behind in the hands of those. . . barbarians. I did catch a tiny glimpse of the pale colt, Novella, rising to chase after me as he called my name, but he was blocked, albit unintentionally, by the laughing classroom. I never saw Novella again; he and his family seemed to have disappeared from the face of Equestria. The taunting did cease eventually but that particular day was one I would always remember. “I don’t want to talk about it,” was all I could say to Aloe Vera. She shrugged. “Alright. I don’t want to reopen old wounds, since it seems you weren’t exactly happy during that flashback.” I blushed. “Was it really that noticeable?” “Very.” I sighed. I really do need to control my emotions. But my mind was soon taken off the subject when I felt Aloe and Lotus work wonders on my back, their hooves brilliantly working together in harmony to relieve all tension I had. Breathing in with a smile, I allowed myself to close my eyes and hum a random tune as a sense of peace overcame me. Discord, hmm… I hope he behaves at the picnic But I let the thought disintegrate. Why was I at the spa if I was going to worry about things out of my control? Crack. “Oooooooooohhhhh yea-a-a-a-h-h-h-h....” My voice buffered with each hit that the twin’s did on me, as they hit a certain area by my tailpiece full of tension. And as one of the sistesr rubbed away the pain I felt myself melt into the seat I was on. “My, my, Miss. Rarity, you’ve been really stressed out these past few weeks, haven’t you?” Lotus asked, never halting with her massaging. “Y-You have n-n-no idea…” I murmured back, blissfully unaware of what was going on around me. Their hooves worked in a perfect rhythm as they circled around my postern in a magical sort of way. But as I rested under the touch of the two spa ponies, my mind was prone to drift off to the deepest, darkest corners of my moonstruck mind… Why had I asked Discord to accompany me to a picnic? Sure, Applejack had knocked some common sense into my head, but she couldn’t have derailed me like that too… I mean, to spend time with him was one thing, but to do it alone? Without Fluttershy there to reel me in back to sanity, what was I to do? Was I losing the years worth of sagacity I had struggled to gather? By the look of it Aloe could tell I was edged about something but she left it aside as she resumed her job. I must now be the most relaxed mare in Ponyville. I wonder if the others are as content as me? What could they be doing now? I know Applejack is at the farm, Rainbow is reading that book of hers, yet Fluttershy and Twilight. . . I don’t know what they’re doing. Discord. I wonder what he is doing? Probably being his usual self. I must admit though, his antics are rather entertaining to watch. Especially when he does that cute pouty face of his. I opened my eyes for a brief moment to see the sisters share a quick look. “Oh, so you like Discord’s ‘cute pouty face’~” Aloe and Lotus sing-songed. “What?!” I sprang up, my face most likely flustered. I said that out loud. “Nonnononoono. No!” “Sure you do,” Lotus teased. “Nothing’s wrong if you like him,” Aloe voiced, “there’s no shame in admitting that.” “Ooh, and just think about how your children will look!” Lotus then piped in. “Yes, with their mismatched wings and freaky, oversized heads!” My face turned a deeper red at the mention of ‘children’ “That’s completely absurd,” I argued. “I don’t like him like that!” “Keywords ‘like that,’ which means you still like him.” I did not bother replying, opting to lay my head back down while I tried to drown their laughter. “Just . . . finish the massage please. I’m not paying you for nothing.” “So you feel ready to take it a step further with Dissy?” French ponies these days, I thought. I rolled my eyes though, and decided to brush their remarks off. They always loved a good tease. But as I awaited my massage to resume, I found myself sitting face down without anything to relax myself. I sat up, removing my head from the face cradle with a confused glance to the twins. They now stood in the corner of the small room, whispering and giggling with one another. “Oh come on, girls!” I begged, “Stop fooling around and just hurry up with the massage.” The shared another look with each other before sighing. “Alright, Rarity. But only because we don’t want you putting in a bad review on the newspaper…” I cocked an eyebrow. “Whatever do you mean?” Aloe grinned. “Well… we were going to ask if you’d do a column reviewing our spa in the Ponyville Express.” “And for you to tell them about how great our spa is too,” Lotus added. I let out a groan. “You girls just always expect me to do favors for you, don’t you?” They both nodded. “Very well. But I want a free mudbath with Fluttershy tomorrow if that’s the case.” “Alright!” I let out a yawn as I opened the door to my boutique, calling out, “Sweetie Belle!” I heard a voice from upstairs reply, “Yeah, Rarity?” “Just making sure you came home today.” I heard a groan. “I only ran away once! When I was seven!” “Well excuse me for being a concerned, loving sister.” “BLEGH! Rarity, stoppit!” Rubbing a temple with a forehoof, I simply decided to ignore my sister’s antics as I made my way to the kitchen. Opening up the fridge with a spell, I looked around for things to put into the picnic basket, which lay somewhere in the mess of clothes I’d left on the floor. “Champagne, cheese and crackers, hummus, bread, daisy sandwiches- oooh, I have those imported grapes too! Perfect…” Gathering everything up with small incantations, they soon all hovered around as I shut the stainless-steel door with a brisk flick of my wrist, turning around to sort it all out on the table. I wonder if Discord will even like any of this... Oh, I knowthis isn’t very lady-like, but… Levitating a lemon over, I then retrieved a knife from the sink and sliced it in half, dripping it all over one of the sandwitches. Whilst doing this, I imagined all the faces he would make, and how he would lean over and pucker up… “Ahh!” My hoof was caught on one of the leftover paint cans from Sweetie Belle’s endeavors, and I found myself flat on my back on the floor. Pain shot up my shoulder. “Celestia-dam-” “Rarity, Mommy doesn’t like you swearing!” Muttering the curse under my breath, I let out a groan of repine and flopped over to my stomach, pondering just why my thoughts turned to rather… irregular thoughts. “Pucked lips? Leaning over? Hot, sweaty, bulging muscles on a french ponie as he whispers,’Come fly with me’, only it’s Discord?” Aloe and Lotus’ teasing came up. “You liiiiiiiike him~” I let out a scream at the thought. “Geez Rarity, you’re screaming as if you figured out you like Discord!” I screamed some more. “Yeah, that is kind of bad.” “NOT. HELPING.” My breathing quick and panicked, I jockeyed for a sitting position, placing a hoof over my chest. My heart was pounding like a caged animal, and I once more asked a one-worded question: Why? Why would I possibly hold affections for Discord? Why was the thought of it enough to make me scream? Surely Fluttershy had something going on with him, and it had never bothered me to think it before. Shaking my head, I looked back over to the mess I’d made on the kitchen floor, deciding to simply clean it up and continue my packing, pushing the thought out. The ponyville bridge, from where I stood, looked like a scene from a rococo painting as it lay there, the stream flowing underneath, the tiny numbers of ponies either crossing or just standing on the bridge, leaning on the rails whilst they enjoyed the lowering sun. Discord stood on the upper arch of the bridge looking at the water below as his tail gently swished back and forth. Okay Rarity, breath in, breathe out. There’s nothing crazy about this, just an evening with Discord. What could go wrong? Heh heh, knock on wood! I could feel all but goosebumps as I went to him, levitating my basket to the side. Please, for the love of Celestia, don’t let him call me Rares, I thought as I gently patted his shoulder, his head turning towards me. “You seem really eager,” I playfully teased while bearing a smile. “Well, It seems so,” Discord rubbed his head while a sheepish smile was plastered on his face, “I was simply so ecstatic to hear your nagging, so I came forty-five minutes early!.” Forty-five minutes early? If it was ten minutes early I would understand, disregarding the insult… But forty-five minutes? “That’s not a real answer, Discord. I can see you’re lying.” His nose returned to its normal length. “Well, maybe I was happy to hang out with you for once! Jeez, you never bothered to even send a letter once since our friendship started...” I grumbled. Here was the Discord I knew. “And since you made the effort to take me out with you I took the liberty to wear my best suit,” With a snap of a claw a black suit appeared around. I rolled my eyes and shook my head but I could not help but laugh on the inside. Why was I laughing on the inside? Am I supposed to be annoyed? Irritated at least or most? He then looked at me up and down. Is he… no, Rarity, shush! “And for once you haven’t worn a giant hat! Anyways, I thought that we could have an evening picnic for a start so I brought a blanket.” With another snap we both appeared on an empty grassy hill underneath a tree and a red plaid cotton blanket appeared. Right over my head. Why me? I thought as I struggled with fighting to get untangled from the blanket. Discord covered his mouth with his paw as he tried to stiffen a giggle. Why couldn’t looks put people in the Emergency Room? “Get this wretched thing off of me now!” “Oh dear, I’m terribly sorry. Allow me.” Another snap and the blanket was laid neatly on the grass. “Where are we even?” I looked around. All that was in view was grass and wheat that stretched to the horizon. Possibly a small red barn in the distance too. “Just a hill where I like to relax at times.” “You? Relaxing?” I scoffed, “Knowing you, this place should be raining chocolate or dogs.” “Hey, just because I am the master of chaos doesn’t mean that I am not an admirer of beautiful sights!” A single eyeglass poofed into existence on his left eye and a moustache poofed under his nose. I then heard him mumble something. “What was that?” “N-nothing, nothing! Just think about how, er, dog rain would look! Yes!” He placed his hands in view and shook his head. I could have sworn hearing the words and now I have two beautiful sights to admire. Maybe that was all in my head, though. What could he mean by that… Shaking my own head, I decided to switch the subject to something else. “I bought some things we could eat, anyways.” I unpacked the items from the picnic basket, laying them out neatly. I would admit that the dishes I had retrieved, even though they were packed in a mere basket, took form over function just a little. “Wow Rarity, even your dishes has the pazzzaaazzzzzz look in them!” Discord waved his hands in an arch path. I chuckled. “Aha. A laugh. That was a laugh. Fillies and gentlecolts we have a laugh!” He spread his arms out and sang. The ravens flew from the wheat towards the horizon. The horizon that was painted orange and red from the setting of Princess Celestia’s sun. Feeling myself begin doze off, I rolled my eyes as I lay back on the blanket. But they opened back up when I felt something hot and sticky on my shoulder, looking up to see Discord hovering over me with a malicious grin. My whole body went tense as I tried to figure out what to do, mind going blank. Why was he above me? Why was he smiling like that? And why was he… His lion paw tapped my forehead, and I blinked. “Tag. You’re it.” “...tag?” Jumping off of me, he bounded off into the field, yelling,”Glorious, fun tag!” Sighing, I leaned up, drowsily mumbling,”But I’m tired. Can’t we just eat?” “Yes, you can eat my dust!” To enhance his words, a small poof of dust appeared in front of my lips, and swirled around me, forcing me to close my eyes once more. “Discord!” Jumping up from the cloth-and kicking over some glasses in the process- I chased after him, while he giggled like mad and ran on all fours. Approaching another hill, he spread out his wings and flew up, with me jumping after him, only to fall face-first into the light green grass surrounding me. The chase was over, and now I was positively disgruntled, to say the least. Spiraling up in the air, he laughed as I coughed up dirt, soon diving back down and sitting beside me. “Ha! You should see yourse-” Grabbing a hoof-full of dirt myself, I gave my best throw, and it ended up leading straight on his face. Cracking a grin, I spoke out. “Even a lady will get her hooves dirty when it’s as hilarious as this.” I gathered more clumps of dirt and aimed it at his head. It landed with a splat directly covering his eyes this time.. His mouth twisted into a frown as he snapped his claw and a vacuum, already running, popped into existence as he vacuumed the dirt from his messy face. I fell back and laughed, failing to notice the enormous clump of mud flying at tremendous speed towards me. A splat and a laugh was audible. “Oh, It. Is. On!” Before long, what was seen as a peaceful meadow filled with rolling hills and serene atmosphere was now a battlefield with clumps of dirt, mud, and grass being aimed back and forth, and back and forth again. Somehow the psychological effect that dirt had on me was, well, not effective because I kept grabbing even more of the substance of forgotten abomination. I eventually forgot why I was doing it but I kept at it with simpers and guffaws till my bemire hooves and limbs cramped. I thought it was finally over as I took deep breaths and hunkered down. Oh how wrong I was. Expect the unexpected with Dissy. Especially when he instantly appears with a levitating pile and drops it- Did I just call him Dissy? Leaning up and just dodging the projectile aimed at me, I screamed at the top of my lungs. “DISSY! OH CELESTIA WHY! OF ALL THE POSSIBLE THINGS THIS IS THE WORST. POSSIBLE. THING!” “...” “Oh Rarity,” the draconequus said, snapping his claws repeatedly in front of me, “My dear, dear Rarity, snap out of it. I will throw another pile of… let’s say feculence at you if you don’t wake up.” At the mention of ‘pile’ I scooped up hoof-fulls of dirt and tackled him, sending him backwards with a filthy muzzle as I climbed onto his chest and made his face as one with the surrounding earth. I kept on doing so until I feared he couldn’t breathe, swiping some off his nostrils before my weary body gave in. “I… I haven’t had that much fun inyears,” I pant while laying my head on his chest for a while. “Maybe it’s because Sweetie Belle showed up. I don’t know.” “Well,” Discord had his mischievous tone again, “I’m kind of fancying your fun.” “What do yo-” I started but then I noticed. If anypony saw both of us in our current position he or she would think that we were a couple. My face turned beet but somehow I did not want to move. Was I tired? Was I just too occupied with hearing his heart beat? What is it, for Celestia’s sake! For my sake! “Well, somebody looks adorably confused on my chest,” a voice purred from below me. I tried to look down, but I felt a claw going through my mane. My head instantly froze, and I choked down the urge to scream ‘assault’, seeing as I usually never let anybody touch my mane. Even Aloe and Lotus would receive a scolding if they so much as grazed it. Just as I was about to say something though, I felt myself smack against the ground as Discord teleported away, laughing and wiping the mud off his face. “Oh, you should’ve seen that cute little flustered look you had!” I felt my face go redder. “You-I-My mane!” I then eeped as I realized Discord’s talons had been muddy, and too my horror feeling the wet, squishy substance in my hair. Looking up to him, I grinded my teeth savagely and let my mouth run tempestuously. “Nobody dares to mess with my mane, Discord! I work on it for hours, and even if you're slightly attractive you have no rights to mess with it! At all. Same with the fact that I may or may not like you! Mess with it again, Dissy, and I will literally gouge out your ey- …” I felt myself grow silent at the realization of what I’d just said. Desire - Chapter 3Discord stared at me, eyes wide as beads of sweat rolled down his forehead. The same was for me too, as my muscles grew tense and immobile. I stared back at Discord. Discord stared back me. And in a flash of blinding white light, I found myself looking at the wide open sky, no draconequus to be found anymore. So that’s when I started screaming internally, unable to open my mouth to yell out loud. Or move anything at all to show my fear. I couldn’t help but wear a small smile as I trailed off to the thought Discord connecting with the rest of my friends after so much time of him refusing to do so. Collapsing onto my bed after a rough day of caring for the animals, I let a sigh escape from my throat as I closed my tried eyes. Sure, they’d always been friends with him since I was tasked with his reformation, but it wasn’t until Tirek came that everyone of them realized that Discord wasn’t all that bad; that he was a true friend. He’d done some bad, but he realized that in the end. I’d always known that, of course, but it just took them some time for everyone else to learn it themselves. Especially Rarity. So my grin grew wider at the fact that she had been the first pony to offer her time to him. Things have really changed… haven’t they? For the better too. That was when I heard a clattering noise come from downstairs, followed by the shrill voice of the very spirit I’d been thinking about. “Fluttershy, I have a code three hundred!” I sighed, my ears flattening as I forced open my burning eyes. Why would he possibly teleport here in the middle of a picnic if he didn’t do something bad? All good things must come to an end, a little voice replied. “But why so soon?” I put on my usual benevolent smile as the sound of his footsteps grew louder, hoping for the best as I lifted my head up just in time to see him practically explode into my room, a look of pure consternation on his face. I kept up the smile, though it was strained. “Ahem, uh, Discord, I don’t think we really went over a code three hundred…” I started off saying. “Well, It means the white one has hurt me!” I cocked an eyebrow. “What could Rarity possibly have done?” His face switched to disgust in an instant, and he let out a hissing noise. Scrunching his nose and narrowing his eyes, he then spoke. “She has admitted affections towards me!” I smiled. “Discord… what?” “AFFECTIONS Fluttershy!” Discord bellowed, the wind blowing my mane backwards. “She is showing feelings for me.” Discord crossed his finger and his claw when he quoted the word ‘feelings.’ “Rarity actually did that? As in, um, romanticly?” I raised an eyebrow as I said the words. “YES!” Discord slapped his paw upon his face, covering his eyes. I cringed upon hearing the loud impact of the paw on his face. “That’s... wonderful?” Discord slowly walked to the nearby wall and proceeded to pound his head on the wooden surface. Thunk, thunk, thunk. I heard him mumble incoherents too, only catching the phrase ‘having to spell everything out’.’ “A-are you okay?” Discord stopped planting his head on the wall and he looked at me with deadpan face. He took huge, deep breaths, corners of his mouth twitching. “No Fluttershy, I’m not okay. We went over this.” “We… we did?” He buried his face into both of his hands simultaneously, speaking through them. “Fluttershy, Rarity has said she likes me. I am a centuries old spirit of chaos who has caused mass devastation and has been imprisoned in stone for a little over a thousand years. I have seen ponies die before and watched their great great grandchildren do the same. I have played massive roles in both protecting and destroying not only Equestria, but the whole world. I have even taken down the very ponies that took me down milleniums ago. “And here’s a fashionista that likes me, wants to date me, and possibly more. What the heck am I supposed to do, Fluttershy?” He didn’t let me respond. “Because I have no clue! So no, Fluttershy, I am not, in any way, okay right now. Capische?” I tried to say something, but I couldn't. All I did was silently climb up into a sitting position on my bed, staring at him with wide eyes. “Do you see now?” “I… I think so.” He smiled. “Good. Now,should I date her?” I scrunched my nose, the question echoing through the room. As I formulated an answer, an uncomfortable silence passed between as I fumbled around with my hooves. “Well?” He spoke in a demanding voice, and I was forced to cough out an answer. “Er, why are you asking me? Rarity’s the one who’s an expert in these thi-... Oops.” He looked as if he was on the verge of crying. Was it sadness or madness? I could not decide. “Fluttershy, if you don’t help me now, I think I am going to start an uprising in Griffionstone, blow up a few building, and proceed to have them overthrow Equestria. Then, I will literally eat the Crystal Empire and violently vomit out my own internal organs before replacing them with potatoes.” “Uh, I don’t think you need to bring potatoes into this.” “Then what should I do?” he was on the verge of yelling. I sighed. “Discord, I’m sorry but this is something you.. you have to deal with on your own. This happened between you two, and it should stay between you two. Because what if I say something and it’s wrong? You don’t like it? I… I-I don’t know much about romance stuff, but I know that much.” I noticed Discord’s eyes. They looked dejected yet it cannot be helped. “Now go and poof yourself back and talk to her. You don’t leave a lady waiting alone on a date.” Discord’s shoulders slumped. He snapped his claws and he was gone. Just like that. The clearing was silent. No breeze blew through the leaves of trees, no ponies hooves clopped against the grass- not even a small mouse or bird was to be heard flying or scurrying away as the evening sun began to fade. Once my overall panic went away, it switched to a feeling of nervousness as I fell down onto my back, staring up at the cloudless sky. Where has he gone? Is going to tell the rest of our friends? Does he not accept my affections? Am I going to be brutally rejected? And I… “I actually like him. But how?” How? The question wouldn’t leave my mind. It refused to back down until it was answered. Yet there was no answer… Like so many of the questions I continued to have. It’s not like we’d ever hung out that much or… well, anything. What similarities do we share, what would make us click? What, what, what, what! My breathing was fast and I climbed up again, beginning to traipse back and forth. My ears were twitching and I was shaking my head, one of my forehooves rubbing a temple. My tail swished and my lower eyelid twitched, and my mind veered on the edge of insanity. There was nothing logical to explain anything I was feeling at that moment. Nothing. At. All. Romance? For Discord? It was something that seemed more like a loony dream from Pinkie Pie than real life. I turned around to continue the cycle of pacing once more, only for my hoof to catch on a stone buried in the grass. My body went hurtling forward and I let out a small scream before my muzzle was muffled with dirt and anything else to be found on the ground. That was when I snapped. Jolting upwards and coughing up whatever had entered my mouth, too galled to care what it was, I ground my teeth together as my probably bloodshot eyes shot around looking for something to simply smash on the ground or lob into the air with all of my might. I needed to vent, and without anyone to talk to or anything else, smashing was the best way no matter how uncouth. I quickly saw the area Discord and I had been picnicking, and before I could even register what my hooves were doing I was scuttling towards it at near light speed, narrowing my eyes while putting on my best damnable smile. I felt mad. Insane. Flummoxed, for lack of a better word. Why did I like Discord? Why would he just leave me like that? I came skidding to a halt as I practically pounced onto the basket laying in the middle of the blanket Discord had laid down, almost tearing it open with the force of my magic as I carelessly tossed the things I’d worked so hard to pack away. And that’s when I found it. I wanted to smash it. I wanted to burn it. I was inconceivably livid and I was thinking of every single way to destroy the blasted picture Pinkie had snuck of me and him together. But that’s when I stopped. My ragged breathing ceased, along with my pounding heart and grinding teeth. Everything stopped. Gently securing it in my muddied hooves, I lifted it up to eye level. Because what it showed was the reason why I’d ever want to like someone like him. I have no clue of the picture’s appearance in the basket, though I did vaguely remember Pinkie slipping something into the basket when she stopped me. But that did not mean it had no effect, as the memory attached to it resurfaced. There was a light drizzle caused by the pegasi, a faint pitter-patter of the rain against the windows being the only sound to be heard. I stayed indoors, not even thinking about getting my fur and my mane damp. I could not find my umbrella anywhere and I was sure that Sweetie Bell took it when she went to those friends of hers. I was stuck, unable to go out and at least say hi to one of my friends. But at least I was warm and dry. Knock Knock Knock. My ears pricked at the sound of someone knocking. Who could it be? I thought as I strained to rise from the couch and walk to the door. I pressed on the doorknob with my magic. “Hello,” I began, “How may I help… you?” I expected someone to be there but there was no one at all. I looked to the left and the right. No one. I took a glimpse up, thinking that it must have been a pegasus playing a prank. But the sky was relatively clear, with a few clouds being an exception. I finally looked down. There, lying on the ground was an umbrella. But it was not my umbrella. This particular umbrella was green. I picked it up and twirled it around while looking at the detail. There, I saw a folded note taped to the handle. I peeled the paper off, unfolded it and began to read. Get your gem covered flank over at Sugar Cube corner. You have an umbrella, so there’s no excuse. Signed, Totally not a pink earth pony. I rolled my eyes as I threw the note aside.Pinkie Pie can be really determined to get her way. I groaned as I picked up and opened the umbrella, closed the door behind me, and made my way through the slightly muddy road. I will need to go to the spa after this, I thought. The walk went by fast, seeing as my mind was preoccupied with thoughts of my next dress line clouding my head. I raised my hoof and knocked on the door of Sugar Cube Corner. I knocked once. Silence, besides the rain outside and the occasional pony walking by. I was about to knock again when the door opened slightly, a pink hoof outstretched. “What the-” Before I could finish the sentence it snatched my raised hoof and pulled me in. The place was dark as the door shut behind me. Why were the lights off? The only time when Pinke has the lights off is when she has a… oh yeah. I made no signs of movement or fright when the chorus of ‘SURPRISE’ echoed throughout each corner of the building, or when a pink face suddenly appeared directly in front of me. “Hiya Rarity,” the pink face squealed, “Glad you could make it! What took you so long?” “Hello Pinkie Pie,” I looked around and noticed all of the smiling faces. “I should have known.” “Known what? And why the long face? It’s your birthday. You should be smiling~” With that statement said, Pinkie Pie grabbed both edges of my mouth and pulled them upwards to form a forced smile. “AAAAHHHHHHH!” I screamed. Pinkie released her grip from my aching mouth. “That hurts.” “Oops, sorry.” I looked around at all the ponies around me, smiling with party hats on and cake in their hooves. It was certainly a nice gesture, but I nevertheless let out a sigh. “Pinkie, you know I don’t like surprise parties.” “I… forgot?” Pinkie released her biggest smile yet. I shook my head while chuckling slightly. “It’s fine, Pinkie. You know I love any part of yours anyways.” “Yippie!” She went bounding off somewhere amongst the crowd, and I let my smile fall, groaning. “How much frosting will there be this time?” I shuddered at the image of Applejack’s birthday party. “So many sprinkles…” But my flashback was soon broken by a flash of blinding white light. “Well, well, well, look what the pink candy-demon brought in!” There he was. Him. In all his comical glory. He wore a white face covered in polkadots of different colors and sizes along with a bright red artificial nose over his real nose. He wrapped his arm around my neck. “Hello Birthday girl!” the irritating draconequus caterwauled near my ear while not letting go of his grip around me. “Discord.” I struggled to push him away but he was not easy to budge. “Let go of me you brute!” “Not even a teensy-weensy bit happy to see me?” Discord wore a smile that can only be matched with the smile of Pinkie’s. I glared at him, my teeth clenched and my eyes narrow. Then I heard a click. “Perfect!” I turned to the direction of what was unmistakably Pinkie’s voice. She was holding a camera in her hooves. Rainbow Dash, Twilight, Fluttershy, and Applejack were crowded behind her as they tried to catch a glimpse of the camera’s tiny screen. Fluttershy and Twilight had the decency to cover their mouths to hide their obvious giggles. Whereas Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash fell on the floor in an intense laughter. “Oh no you didn’t.” My eyes widened at the camera. “Here, take a look Rarity,” Pinkie pie turned the camera around and I was able to view the screen clearly. The screen and the cursed picture. Sure enough, in the picture Discord’s arm was around me. He was smiling, while my eyes bore through his soul. “Ooh,” Discord looked at the picture with a magnifying lens near his eye, “You captured it impeccably. I would like a copy to keep if you don’t mind? “Sure thing!” “Delete that picture now!” I chased after the pink ball of energy but she had already zipped off. Finding her would be near to impossible. Even I knew that. “Couldn’t have been a better moment to take that picture,” Discord tapped me on my nose. “Wouldn’t you agree? “Discord,” I began to stomp away from the imperfect figure, “Go away.” Fluttershy didn’t realize I wasn’t going to see Rarity though. She didn’t know what love actually meant to me. No, chaos was too big of a concept for anyone besides me to understand anyways. I laid down on my cotton candy cloud, pounding it with my lion fist. Chocolate rain went flying upwards into my face, and I growled, hitting my first again to make it go away. “Dumb little marshmallow hor- gah pony!” My teeth grinded and a tooth flying out in the process before it grew back in a flash. My tail swished back and forth irritably and I squeezed my eyes shut until they hurt and I had to open them again. My friends. Friends. They all saw me as a hollow-skulled comedian who had no grasp on the concepts of love, intelligence, you name it- I was a bumbling fool in their eyes. “Not even Twilight matches up to my smart-y ness!” I tried to stand up and ended up doing a front-flip into the air, teleporting back to the cloud. “It’s just, unlike her, I want to have some fun,” I then whispered, furrowing my eyebrows as I watched an eagle dive down. “Fun…” the eagle’s feathers disappeared in an explosion of confetti and glitter, it’s wings turning into cotton candy. “Wait, no, Fluttershy would disapprove!” I changed the strawberry flavored M&M’s covering it’s body to grape. “She’ll like that much better.” But my fun and games wouldn’t last long as I tried to diverge from the topic at hand. I saw something white darting across the grassy fields below me as the eagle fell, and I brought the pirate-like telescope in my lion hand to my eye. It was her. Rarity. Crying. The telescope vanished. “I…” No jokes were to be made. I couldn’t up with one. There was positively nothing to cheer me up at that very moment. I was silent. The cloud vanished. The eagle was given its feathers back. My mind blanked, until a thought appeared in the darkness of my conscious. What about her? What about her and what shefeels? I sighed as I made my way towards the sobbing mare. How should I tell her? Should I let her down easy? Or should I be blunt with her? This should be easy to choose. Why am I having difficulty? It’s just Rarity. I snapped my claw. Face it now… might as well. “Rarity,” I teleported in front of her, and she skidded to a halt. Her makeup was running and she was biting her bottom lip to choke back sobs, tears running down her cheeks.She hadn’t been like that before… why now? She barely managed to stare at me before I noticed something hovering beside in a shiny blue aurora. A picture, from when I was with her at her birthday party. I tried to say something, but I couldn’t. My mouth was glued shut, and all I could do was stare back at her shaking eyes. I hadn’t really done anything, yet I was inclined to apologize… for what, though? I shouldn’t have left, but she shouldn’t have run away either… or should she have? This is why I’ve disregarded love… I’ve never been welcome to it anyways. Or maybe, should I apologize for what I’ve become? A heartless friend who leaves ponies when they need him. “I’m… sorry.” That’s when she started running again. But it was towards me, instead of away. Was that right? Shouldn’t she be calling me a monster, leaving me here to realize all I’ve done wrong? Everything was a blur from there when I felt something I should’ve never felt. I couldn’t move. It was wrong. But… My body froze when she wrapped her hooves around me and looked me straight in the eyes, before closing her own and pressing her lips against mine. Why? The feeling of her soft lips pressing upon mine was a feeling unlike any other. It left a warm, tingly, pleasant sensation on my mouth and I couldn’t help but press against her lips too as I closed my eyes. But, just like that, she pulled away, arms letting go.Her cheeks were tinted with a deep red and she turned her head away from me. Fast. Like a blink. One word raced through my mind though. Wrong. I didn’t even know if I loved her yet, but the look in her eyes… I felt pity more than anything. “I-I… I’m so sorry,” she whispered ever so softly. Her ears were drooped. Her eyes were tightly shut and tears were pouring through her eyelids “Rarity?” I placed my claw under her chin, turning her head to face me. “Please look at me.” She ever so slowly opened her eyes, head hung low yet I could see she was looking up. At me. I saw her then look away, my claw leaving her face as she climbed up to all fours. She was going to run again. So I grabbed her forelegs, and she let out a small yelp as I pulled her into a soft embrace. I felt her hooves encircle me tightly. I heard muffled sobs. “Rarity,” I stopped the hug and looked at her face. But her face was different. She was smiling. And what a smile it was. “T-thank you.” But did I love her? Discorded - Chapter 1Chapter 2 Our cutie marks were not flashing. There were no current invasions that required our service. Pinkie Pie was not hosting another one of her ‘welcome to ponyville’ parties for any stranger. So, that made me wonder. Why didTwilight formally request me to meet at her castle? No clues were left when she instructed me to meet her there other than the others’ supposed attendance, and she left in a bit of a rush before I could ask a quick question. It happened so fast I had to wonder if it even happened or if it was all in my head... As I slowly trotted up the cobblestone path to Twilight’s tree castle, I thought of all the possibilities for our summons. What it could be. Surely there was no ‘emergency’ friendship ruination. Maybe Twilight wanted assistance? But why so formal about it? Further up the path I caught a glimpse of Applejack as she too galloped towards the direction of the castle. “Applejack!” I called out to her. Applejack’s ears pricked as she turned her head towards me, slowing down to a jog. “Wait up!” “Howdy Rarity!” she greeted me with a toothy smile and a wave as I walked faster to catch up with her. Not too fast though, as I did have a level of elegance and grace to uphold. “How’re ya doing this fine day?” “All right, thank you.” This day was indeed fine, to say the least. The weather ponies had cleared the skies of all clouds, letting Celestia’s sun shine down in all its grandeur and splendor. It was not too hot though, and left us room to breathe and sweat-free. It made the morning’s dew coruscate on the neatly trimmed grass placed on either side of the path, and gave off a rather cheery feeling. Birds chirping, ponies smiling- all of that.As for the bright blue sky, it provided a spectacle worthy of getting lost into, deep and vast like the ocean. Seeing as neither of us had diverged to different paths yet, Applejack was inclined to say, “Let me guess, Twilight called ya too, didn’t she?” “Yes she did. Have any idea about what it could be?” She shook her head. “Enope. Ah guess we just gotta wait till we get there. Discord knows though, Twilight has been a bit jumpy recently.” Applejack glanced to her right. “Speak of the devil,” she pointed, “there’s Fluttershy. And Discord’s with her.” I looked over to the direction where Applejack was pointing and sure enough Fluttershy and Discord were walking towards the castle as well. And by the look of it I would say that the two were enjoying an interesting conversation. Fluttershy was laughing while Discord made motions with his right paw and his left bird limb. “Ugh, Discord,” I sighed as I watched the duo. “I know we forgave him for betraying us when Tirek was around, but I’m still not fond of him. He’s got something peculiar going.” Applejack looked at me, her right eyebrow sticking up. “Now what in tarnation do ya mean, sugar cube? He hasn’t given any trouble since that incident and that was a while ago. I can tell he’s learnt his lesson, and that’s coming from the mare that can smell a lie a million miles away. It’s about time too if ya ask me.” I continue to cavil anyways though. “I know, but he still makes me unhinged. Especially when he calls me ‘Rares’.” My mouth twisted into an irregular shape as I spat out my newly given nickname. “I don’t like it when he calls me that at all.” “I know Rarity, but it’s his way of being nice to you. He’s at least making an effort. Ya gotta give him credit for that.” I know my whines are becoming painful to Applejack by now, but I continue my protesting. It seems the stubbornness of both her and Rainbow Dash has truly began to rub off on me. “I see your point,” I admit, “but I wish he would just quit it. He’s such a bother!” I proceed to sigh as I rub my eyes with my hoof. I then let out a yawn. “Excuse me, dear. Just tired.” Designing the next lines of fashions is certainly a wonderful job, but it can take its toll. Migraines are no stranger to me while trying to search and pull scraps of ideas from my mind and connect them together like a puzzle. It is no easy task, and Discord’s antics along with the name he dubbed me were not helping. Not one bit. Nevertheless I continued up the road in silence. Applejack simply shrugged as she shook her head and walked on. But after a few minutes of silence I could see it had crawled under her skin, and soon enough she spoke up. “Rarity,” Applejack said. I looked up. She was not looking back at me but I could see a bit of her face. She knitted her brows and her mouth held a Lilliputian scowl, eyes partially closed. She took a few breaths before she continued. “I think ya should give Discord a chance.” “What do you mean? I tolerate him-” “Yes, you tolerate him.” Applejack snapped as she stopped dead in in her tracks, turning towards me. “But that’s not enough. You need to give him a proper chance. And I mean a real chance.” “I don’t know,” I murmured as I looked down at the tiny pebbles that lay scattered on the track. “Look, Rarity,” with her hoof Applejack lifted my head, voice softer than before. “Rainbow Dash still drives you nuts at times, but you two are friends, right?” I was taken back by the remark. “Yes, of course we are!” “Exactly! So you could do the same with Discord. Right?” I walked on without an answer. Could I really do the same? Could I gain and maintain the same level of friendship as I had with Rainbow Dash and the others with Discord? Even after the things he did? I was not quite sure. With that thought in my head I continued my way to the castle in quietude. I simply could not come up with an answer for the time being. We soon arrived at the castle where Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Discord, and Twilight were already waiting. “Hey Rarity, hey Applejack!” Twilight greeted as I entered the throne room. Even though I have been in here many times it has never failed to steal my breath away every time. “Glad you showed up. Pinkie Pie couldn’t make it because she and Maud had a trip planned.” “No problem, Twilight. I had some chores to do, but I could spare a few hours or so for you guys,” Applejack responded with a simper as she took a seat on her throne. I followed suit. “What’s going on?” “Well,” Fluttershy spoke barely above a whisper while we strained our ears to listen, “um Discord wanted to tell you girls something. That’s why Twilight asked you here.” Well that’s peculiar. All eyes turned to the draconequus who, quite surprisingly stood without a sound next to Fluttershy’s throne. He seemed almost sad as he tilted his head down to the ground, scratching away idly at the marble floor. “So,” Rainbow Dash said, “what’s going on? Why’re we here?” His attention was caught. Ears perked up, he looked over to Dash’s throne, where she sat cross-armed. “Well, I just think that I’m not, well, appreciated that much.” Discord closed his eyes and also crossed his arms while he pouted. “Discord, what’re you even talking about?” Discord flattened his ears and growled as a reply to the rainbow-maned mare. “With that attitude, why should I tell you?” There was the childish draconequus I knew. Throwing her arms up in the air, Dash turned back to Twilight with a look of annoyance. “See? This is why we don’t take Discordseriously!” I merely sat there in silence as the scene played out, though I couldn’t say I didn’t agree with Rainbow’s opinion. Twilight rolled her eyes. “Dash, Discord’s one of us now. And while me may be acting juvenile, we have to take him seriously, or else how can we call ourselves his friend? How can we call him a friend?” Rainbow grumbled, nodding back to Twilight. “Yeah, I guess.” Though she still shot a death glare at the draconequus, who smugly grinned back before untwining himself from Fluttershy’s stone chair. Clearing his throat, he began to speak once more. “Alright, alright. All joking aside, I… I just feel that ever since I, well, disregarded what was right and what was wrong with the Tirek… thing, I’ve felt as though ponies have pushed me away.” Everypony besides Fluttershy and Twilight had their jaws drop the ground, especially me. It was rare that Discord actually spoke pensively, even in little bits like this, and we were shocked to say at least. “They look at me like… like I’m a monster. Like I’m an animal needed to be put back in his cage. I… I know I’m a goofy, crazy creature. I’ve done wrong, but does that mean it’s okay to ignore what I’ve done right? I understand that I really messed up with Tirek.” He shot a glance at Rainbow Dash. “And I get that it’s hard to take someone like me seriously. But, if you’d just listen to me now, I… I need everypony to see that I’m really trying to be a good guy. I understand my mistakes, and I’m trying to learn from them. That I can be serious. Pinkie Pie’s a goofball but you all understand that she’s not a foal. She’s mature. An adult. So, why can’t you do the same with me? Have everypony do the same with me? I’m sick of being the untrustable clown of this town. I want to be looked at in the same way everyone else is.” Now it was time for all of us to be dumbstruck. Either Discord was being Discord and he planned his little speech in front of a mirror, or he really meant what he said. But then again, didn’t he just say he was sick of ponies thinking just that? “Wow. Okay Discord,” Rainbow Dash lowered her head and she spoke noticeably calmer than before. “I’m sorry. But, what are you really asking for?” “I just…” He sighed. So much sighing today, it seemed. “...want to do the same things you do, to have fun the same way you have fun, to make jokes and laugh the same way you make jokes and laugh. But I really to share the same friendship with you the same way you all share your friendship with each other. It’s a step to acceptance.” I never thought for once in my mind that Discord could say something with such heartfelt meaning. That he could be genuine. Maybe Applejack was right. Maybe he really was trying to make such an effort to create a bond with us. Maybe I’ve been too cold to him. I breathed in, mentally preparing myself for what was to happen next, Okay, Rarity. I’ll give him the chance he deserves. It is the least I can do. “Well Discord,” I rose from my throne and swiftly hopped down to the ground with a small clop and stood right before the draconequus. His shoulders were slumped and his head was lowered. His aura was obviously different from before; I could detect no mischief. “You can start with me. Would you like to spend time with me tonight?” I could clearly remember the astonished faces portrayed from my friends. Even Discord’s jaw was dropped and his eye were wide open. I let out a tiny smile, though kept my posture stiff and boss-like. “D-do you really mean it Rares?” “Ha ha, Discord. As long as you don’t call me that.” I mock laughed as I threw him a death glare which in my mind promised eternal pain if he did not comply. Discord’s face froze. “Yes Ma’am. Understood.” Discord snapped his fingers and a military helmet appeared atop his head as he saluted. I rolled my eyes as I shook my head.Hmm, there’s been a lot of that too... “Good enough. Anyways, I was thinking a picnic of sorts. But I wont be free until later tonight. Let’s go with six o’clock. Meet me by the bridge. Okay?” I wasn’t going to waste time with small talk. I wanted to get straight to the point. This was to make Discord more welcome, and help with the rest of the town accepting him once more.Help with our little group becoming more accepting towards him. Discord grinned. “Gladly.” Then, with a flash, he was out. “Um…” Applejack was the first to speak up. “Not to be blunt, but did that really jus’ happen? Rarity’s gonna hang out wit’ Discord?” My proud smirk switched to a glower. Twilight was equally surprised though, and gave a confused look to AJ. “Er, it seems so.” Fluttershy was the only one wearing a confident smile among us. “I think it was very kind of Rarity to step up for him.” I couldn’t help but grin goofily at the comment. “Ahm kinda shocked to be honest,” Applejack gave Rarity a warm smile. “But Ah’m really proud of you for doin’ it too. Didn’t think you had it in ya.” She then looked around the room. “I think I could say I’m proud of all of us today too.” But soon Dash was quick to speak up. “Pft, Rarity was the only one to speak up! None of you did anything! Not even you, AJ!” I was ready to defend Applejack as I looked at Rainbow irritably, but I was beat to it. “Ah don’t know what’s got your panties in a twist Dash, but you were against Discord at first! At least the rest of us were willing to sit down and listen to what he had to say like good friends!” “...but I’m not even wearing panties…” “It’s a metaphor, dang it!” “Girls!” It was Fluttershy who spoke up this time. Everypony had hushed themselves as an eerie ringing filled the room, all eyes on her. Fluttershy twiddled with her hooves. “You two need to stop your bickering. We all did good today, and we’re really making progress with Discord. Especially you, Rarity.” I beamed at the praise. “But that’s not the point. It’s understandable that Rainbow Dash was a bit, well, suspicious. But she knew when she messed up. You saw that she regretted what she said after listening. And now it’s time for both of you to say sorry to each other.” Fluttershy crossed her hooves. Applejack and Rainbow Dash glimpsed at each other while they both let out awkward laughs. “Uh,” Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her head, “I’m sorry. I guess I shouldn’t have flown off the handle like that. That wasn’t cool of me. Twenty percent less cool, to be exact.” “Well... Ah’m sorry too sugarcube.” Applejack removed her stetson. “Guess I shouldn’t have started pointing hooves like that. Are we good now?” Rainbow Dash smiled. Not one of her smug smiles, but a true, honest smile. “Yeah, we’re cool.” “Well,” Twilight said from in between the two, “since Discord left, now what should we do?” “I don’t know about ya’ll, but Ah got chores to do back at the farm. Granny’s gonna start nagging in my ear if ah don’t get back soon too. Guess I’m heading out now.” With that Applejack took her leave, hopping off her own throne and heading out the door. “I was reading the new Daring Do book you gave me yesterday.” Rainbow Dash told Twilight, “I think I’ll head back how and finish it. Right now she’s in an abandoned is-” “Don’t tell me!” Twilight covered her ears as tightly as she could. “I haven’t started reading it yet. I don’t want any spoilers.” “Oops, hehe. Well, I’m gonna head out. Also need to go rig up a prank in Pinkie’s house while she’s gone... um, you didn’t hear that. See ya!” Rainbow flew out through the nearby open window leaving a colorful path behind. “Well, Twilight, it seems we all have things planned, so I’ll see you tomorrow then. I think I’ll stop by Aloe and Lotus for a massage or something in the meantime.” “Yeah. That sounds nice.” She then cavorted off her own throne, doing a spin in the air before landing gracefully on all fours. “I think I’m just going to go ahead and enjoy the time I have without paperwork!” We both shared a laugh. “Yeah, I should be leaving soon. I also have next season’s fashion to work on, and I must make it perfect enough for the Canterlot Showroom next month. And I have to prepare for the evening with Discord. I have to find something perfect to wear and-” “Well don’t let us stop you,” Twilight was in the process of shutting me out through the door as I found myself floating in the air. “Let us know how it turns out. Byeee.” With a playful grin Twilight shut the door and dropped me on the ground. I rolled my eyes and stepped to all fours, leaving to the direction of my house as I daydreamed about what to wear and how Discord and I would casually chat. Strangely, I could not wait.
Dejection - Prologue Dejection - Prologue Twilight Sparkle. I heard her hooves banging on my door. Her voice, so raspy and solemn. Screaming, pleading, yelling. Right behind me. Begging for me to unlock it. Let her in. She will have to break it down to get any further. And I fear she will. Does she not remember she wields magic? A unicorn can’t simply forget her horn just like that. With her alicorn powers too, she must have the strength to kick down a door easily… Or maybe she… The mere thought makes the floor whirl and I have to sit down. . ..she truly feels guilt for her actions? That’s the reason that she has forgotten how to teleport? How to buck? Why she won’t do any of those things? But after a few seconds I shake my head and laugh. No. It must be an act of hers. Well thought out, but it’s not going to work on me. Not anymore. With that I let out a long, heavy sigh, my back pressed against the seemly cold but still comforting wall. What does she think she’s doing? One minute she wanted me gone; the next minute she wants me back? Steal my love then ask for forgiveness? Isn’t she supposed to be the ‘Princess of Friendship’? Hypocrisy should be in her title. It doesn’t work like that, Twilight. Naive, backstabbing Twilight... I let my eyes close as I try to drown out the thumping sounds. But of course, peace cannot come to me today as my mind trails off to other thoughts. Rares. Brown coat. Yellow eyes. Memories of a pony and draconequus sitting under the starlight. I would do so much for him... But what does he do? He rejects me. We kiss and he treats it as if it were platonic. Since when did kisses as passionate as that become platonic? Meaningless? Thrown away as if it was a simple touch. My hooves are shaking as I crack open one eye. I notice the fidgeting and the sweat Why hadn’t I felt that? Where has my sanity gone? Why am I like this? Questions, questions, questions. The scenes. Why are they so perfectly remembered in my head? Twilight stealing my gift, claiming it to be hers.Twilight telling me that henever loved me, when I know there were sparks of something before. Twilight kissing him right in front of me, not caring as to what it would do. Why could I remember it all as if it were a mere few minutes ago? Kissing. Discord and Twilight. Twilight and Discord. Their kiss had meant something. So what happened to mine? Rarity and Discord is how it should be. I simply know that to be true. I wish I could scream. Scream as loud as my vocal cords could handle until Celestia and Luna were dead. Too much pain, too much sorrow. Rejection. Objections. All these things are useless in the long run when you’re supposed ‘best friend’ dangles the love of your life in front of you like a toy. And no matter how much you try to get it back, it’ll never be yours again. You know that too. But I still hear the banging on the door from outside, followed by two puny words. Two words that wouldn’t matter in any other case. Words twisted with sweet concern when, in reality, they were sour. “I’m… sorry.” That is it. I’m screaming on the inside. My eyelid twitches and my tail flicks. I cannot take this anymore. Lies, lies, lies, lies. I just want this to stop. My eyes are blurring of from the onslaught of tears making their way out. Scanning the room, I spot a side table with a piece of paper and a pencil on it. ...I have an idea... With my brain pounding and my tears pouring I groggily clambered up to all fours and trotted over to the table. “Rarity,” Twilight called again, “I know you’re in there. You…” she paused, but I continued my trek. “... you don’t have to accept my apology. But at least... let me tell you face to face. I-It’s all I’m asking...” I hear her sob. It sounded muffled as if her face was buried in her hooves,but it was definitely a sob. A fraction of me wants to open the door from sheer sympathy, but the rest of me still despises what she did. What she's doing. No forgiveness for the wicked. I ignored her as I picked up the pencil with my magic and began to write furiously. No sitting, no thinking, no anything. Just writing whatever thoughts popped into my brain as I became lost in the moment. I did not care about making my handwriting as elegant as I usually do; I did not care about being polite; I did not care that I was close to breaking the table itself as it shook under the pressure of my green aura. She, the pony that hurt me throughout the years, should be thankful that I am writing this because I did not care if they found this note. Once I finished shaping the ink to loathe I tossed it to the side. Gathering a rolled bundle of fabric with quick flares of spells, I then chopped away carelessly at it with a pair of scissors from the ground. It wasn’t meant to be beautiful. It wasn’t meant to be anything but a hashed piece of fabric born from my vexation and whole-hearted rage. By the time when beads of sweat mixed with my tears and fell to the ground, I let out a wail and slumped to the ground, fabric coming with me. I was sobbing, weeping, letting my dejection go. I was broken down to nothing and wasn’t afraid to show it. When I am able to reopen my eyes-barely noticing they were closed before-I saw the rolled up fabric on the floor. Seeing as I have nothing to lose, I levitate it up into the air, unrolling it to reveal five letters arranged to make the one word looming in the back of my mind for some time now. Death. I had cut out the word death. Big, bright, lustrous letters in gold,speaking that which I cannot utter. Needed. Craved. Silence. I noticed this just as quickly as it had come. No more banging; no mare yelling. “...Rarity, I’m coming in.” No. This was the one thing she couldn’t ruin. My body shook as I pushed myself up. I yelled back,”H-Hold on! I… I need to get ready.” Another silence. “O…” I heard her clear her throat. “Okay. But if you don’t say anything in the next five minutes, I-I’m coming in!” I nodded, even though I knew she couldn’t see me. Five minutes… might as well work while I have time. My movements were clumsy and uncoordinated, but it didn’t matter. My master plan was coming to me as the seconds flew by, and I needed to make it real. Revenge: A word has never been so bittersweet to me before. I found rope. Heaven knows why I have it, but I do. Looking over to the shelf, I retrieved it from where it was placed with breakneck spurts of emerald light then dragging a chair over to me, tying it around the leg. I proceeded to grab it by the other end and lead it to the doorknob where I secured it in equally fast flashes of white and green. “Three minutes, Rarity.” My heart was pounding like a caged animal. This had to work or it was all over. Retrieving a second piece, I looked up to a small metal hook on the ceiling. It used to hang a small birdhouse for a cockatiel I had long ago, but when it passed away, the old thing completely slipped my mind. Until now. Lifting the beige rope up carefully this time, I slowly fastened it around the steel rod, before harshly tugging on it with all my might. And, to my utmost glee, it didn’t budge. Perfect for the job needed to be done. “One minute, Rarity. I don’t have to do this. Just let me in!” her words were growing more desperate as time passed. “I… I just need some more time! Please, Twilight!” Her name was bile on my tongue, and I forced down the urge to gag. To speak so kindly, when in reality her soul was more foul than Sombra’s own, or even the black magic that had made up Nightmare Moon. Friendship. She’d feigned it all these years, if she was to push me in the mud when I needed a helping hoof. Then to take advantage of my hard work was what had really crossed the line. And to drive me to this… To drive me insane. Before I knew it, I was standing on the chair, looking at the special kind of noose before me. I was crying. So hard. For all the memories tainted with a false sense of happiness. It slipped over my neck in an almost too perfect way. “I’m coming in, Rarity!” “Wait!” There was a pause before a small click of a lock could be heard. “C-Come in.”
Deception - Chapter 2I had my back and my head firmly resting against the door, trying to ignore the clingy, sticky feeling of my tears on my foreleg’s coat. Breathing rough, wings twitching and heart pounding, I counted each second as they went by, hoping for an answer from inside the building. Nothing. Only a minute remained. One, two, three, four… Time was my greatest enemy for that moment, but it flew by so fast. Fifty-nine, sixty. Time was up. I forced my rigid body to lift itself off the rough wood, and I placed my forehooves down before myself, using my back legs to thrust up into a standing position. Grueling, I then turned around to the face the door, straightening my posture and puffing my chest in an attempt to boost my own dwindling confidence. “I’m coming in, Rarity!” “Wait!” I paused, realizing my horn had flared up and I was about to burst the door down. Ears perked to listen for a reply, I heard muffled sounds of something moving before there was a sharp click. “C-Come in.” I looked to the lavender doorknob before me, begging to be pushed open. To show me if all the nasty things I’d thought, done and said were to take their tolls. How ironic, I thought, the same color as me… It almost taunted me with the way it sat there patiently. I could even see a familiar grey face looking back at me in it.Taking a deep breath, my magenta aura wrapped around it slowly. I savored each moment, for it was familiar. The inside of the boutique, however, was unknown territory now. Eventually, I found myself nearly levitating the door and had to stop. No more procrastination. Jostling around with the handle for a few seconds to make sure it was unlocked, my muscles tensed as I shoved the door open with all my might. It sideswiped into the wall, and there was the sound of something striking the ground. My eyes were closed. I wasn’t prepared for what I was going to see. But with the sheer force of my will, they opened. Creaking. The slow creak of something hanging gently swaying from side to side in the air. Creak. Creak. Creak. Rope. White. Purple. Death. My pupils were diminutive. The tears built in the corners of my eyes and cascaded down to the floor. Drop, drop, drop. Creak, creak, creak. My legs turned to nothing, and I was practically razed to the floor. The world around me became a blur of color. Dead, dead, dead. Rarity was dead. I closed my eyes to try to stop the onslaught of salty bitterness, but it was to no avail. Out the tears came like a sea of regrets, never ending and more painful by the second. Seconds. Why did I waste them? Why didn’t I barge in to stop her before it escalated too far? I didn’t know. I forced my eyes open again, only to cover them with my hooves. I let my wings droop off from my sides and I kicked out my hind-legs. I don’t know why I did those things, but I did. Then it kept on going. My tail swished from side to side, I bit my lip as I continued to bawl, I kept on blinking in the blackness that my hooves provided. Denial. Was this it? Or was I simply going mad? A sob escaped my lips and my forelegs moved away. I opened my eyes. A letter. A small piece of paper with a large signature on it that could only be hers. Rarity’s. Impulsively I snatched it with my magic and levitated to my eyes, barely able to make out one paragraph as my tears continued to make their way out. You did this. If not for you, Discord and I would no doubt be happily content with each other's embrace. But you had to drive a wedge between the locks of our arms and the touch of our lips. You, for all your intelligence, who could not have been ignorant of my feelings for him, pushed me away. Now I shall I act, in turn, of what you have done to me. As I have tied your hoof to death from which I am now suspended, so I will tie your happiness to guilt. You will no longer love Discord knowing that my life was the price. --- There is nothing better than getting a massage in the morning. I would not have survived to this day if Aloe Vera and Lotus had not started their establishment. It was always the perfect ideal place to calm my troubles away; to throw away my thoughts about Sweetie Belle being a nuisance as I had a mud bath, to relieve myself of the stress I possessed from pulling an all-nighter designing the next best thing, and more recently, to empty my frustration from Discord addressing me by ‘the name that shall never be spoken’ as I had a gentle massage. A massage that was undertaken by the twins. “You seem to be taking more massages recently,” Lotus was in the process of applying a handful of hot oil on my back while Aloe loosened my shoulders. “Discord’s still messing with you?” “You have no idea,” I spilled a scoff. “I still don’t think it’s that bad,” Aloe Vera voiced as she moved to lightly combing my ears with a brush, “he’s just having fun with you.” “I don’t want him to have fun with me by calling me that!” “If you don’t mind me asking, why do you hate that name?” The name ‘Rares’ has been common with me since my school days. Back then I was not really popular. While everypony went off to have fun during recess I would always retire to a table and draw on a notebook paper. I would draw a variety of ideas from clothing articles to aristocratic interior designs. At field trips, when others wore either a tie or a scarf or a hat, instead I would prefer to wear a cotton frock. And I did. Sadly my use of extravagant garments were not that all able to capture the awed eyes of my classmates. There were always the pointed hooves and the tones of laughter. But that was just the beginning. . . It was Hearts and Hooves day. Everyone was busy scribbling notes into cards and giving them to others who they would dream to be their special someponies. That afternoon after recess I discovered a card. A card that laid on my desk. It was different from the other cards that my classmates made. Others presented their cards exposed. This one was enveloped in what looked to be cotton paper. And the differences did not stop there. The conventional cards had either funny doodles or glitter, which in my opinion ruins the elegance and simplicity, that were drawn with at most half effort. On my card, however, there lay a heart with the name Rares, written and drawn. I know that this design is used a lot, but, by the markings, the design was made using a quill and ink. The heart was symmetrical in each angle and proportion of view. The name ‘Rares’ was written in a penmanship that I could only judge as ‘true effort, skill, and desire. Upon flipping the cover I could only do all but let out a small gasp. The average card done by my fellow classmates either held the text ‘Will you be my special somepony’ or simple remarks like ‘I really like you a lot’ or even uncouth remarks such as ‘You look smokin’ hot.’ This was what I expected as I opened my card but I was truly mistaken. My card did not hold any of those simple messages, but a short poem. I still recall it as clear as day: A little walk in the park and ICan not help butImagine you walkingTalkingLaughingby my sideI yearned to request a day ‘Just a day’ I would sayWith youBut I would fail before the onsetThe words playing in my headSeemingly authenticTaunting me‘With you? Of all people? My my’You would presumably regard me as panickyA worthless bundle of unnatural nervesAnd. . . I would not attributeAs you would be nothing short of The nail set with one strike of…A malletBut I could not put off this eventEven when it is my knowledge that you accepting meMay only be my dreamA surreal pipe dreamBut I desire to grasp at that dreamThat minute fraction of determinationAs I sit on the old stone park bench While the vision of your faceYour smileYour eyesAnd the sound of your beating heartWhile that vision sticks likeA broken recordBut stuck on the piece of the record that I consider DivineI can not hide inside the dark closet while you, you, shine brightly outside in a radiant lightthat overpowers even the SunAnymore. . .Therefore I humbly beseech,May I have the privilegeOf your presence with me For one day In the park as a start?Rares? Your Admirer Novella His real name was Novella, but he was nicknamed by everyone else as ‘Sandpaper’ since his early days in his childhood. Only a few knew of his genuine name; those few being his small family and me. No one else knew, such is the reason, thankfully, he was not ridiculed when it was snatched from my aura grasp and read, aloud may I add, by a group of foals. As they read the pointing hooves and the tones of laughter increased tenfold. All except one colt. He was pale with yellow irises and shaking hooves as he viewed the mocking spectacle. As stinging tears poured I pushed two of the foals as I ran. I was not aiming for a particular destination, the foals I shoved were the last people, no creatures, on my mind. I just ran while the card was left behind in the hands of those. . . barbarians. I did catch a tiny glimpse of the pale colt, Novella, rising to chase after me as he called my name, but he was blocked, albit unintentionally, by the laughing classroom. I never saw Novella again; he and his family seemed to have disappeared from the face of Equestria. The taunting did cease eventually but that particular day was one I would always remember. “I don’t want to talk about it,” was all I could say to Aloe Vera. She shrugged. “Alright. I don’t want to reopen old wounds, since it seems you weren’t exactly happy during that flashback.” I blushed. “Was it really that noticeable?” “Very.” I sighed. I really do need to control my emotions. But my mind was soon taken off the subject when I felt Aloe and Lotus work wonders on my back, their hooves brilliantly working together in harmony to relieve all tension I had. Breathing in with a smile, I allowed myself to close my eyes and hum a random tune as a sense of peace overcame me. Discord, hmm… I hope he behaves at the picnic But I let the thought disintegrate. Why was I at the spa if I was going to worry about things out of my control? Crack. “Oooooooooohhhhh yea-a-a-a-h-h-h-h....” My voice buffered with each hit that the twin’s did on me, as they hit a certain area by my tailpiece full of tension. And as one of the sistesr rubbed away the pain I felt myself melt into the seat I was on. “My, my, Miss. Rarity, you’ve been really stressed out these past few weeks, haven’t you?” Lotus asked, never halting with her massaging. “Y-You have n-n-no idea…” I murmured back, blissfully unaware of what was going on around me. Their hooves worked in a perfect rhythm as they circled around my postern in a magical sort of way. But as I rested under the touch of the two spa ponies, my mind was prone to drift off to the deepest, darkest corners of my moonstruck mind… Why had I asked Discord to accompany me to a picnic? Sure, Applejack had knocked some common sense into my head, but she couldn’t have derailed me like that too… I mean, to spend time with him was one thing, but to do it alone? Without Fluttershy there to reel me in back to sanity, what was I to do? Was I losing the years worth of sagacity I had struggled to gather? By the look of it Aloe could tell I was edged about something but she left it aside as she resumed her job. I must now be the most relaxed mare in Ponyville. I wonder if the others are as content as me? What could they be doing now? I know Applejack is at the farm, Rainbow is reading that book of hers, yet Fluttershy and Twilight. . . I don’t know what they’re doing. Discord. I wonder what he is doing? Probably being his usual self. I must admit though, his antics are rather entertaining to watch. Especially when he does that cute pouty face of his. I opened my eyes for a brief moment to see the sisters share a quick look. “Oh, so you like Discord’s ‘cute pouty face’~” Aloe and Lotus sing-songed. “What?!” I sprang up, my face most likely flustered. I said that out loud. “Nonnononoono. No!” “Sure you do,” Lotus teased. “Nothing’s wrong if you like him,” Aloe voiced, “there’s no shame in admitting that.” “Ooh, and just think about how your children will look!” Lotus then piped in. “Yes, with their mismatched wings and freaky, oversized heads!” My face turned a deeper red at the mention of ‘children’ “That’s completely absurd,” I argued. “I don’t like him like that!” “Keywords ‘like that,’ which means you still like him.” I did not bother replying, opting to lay my head back down while I tried to drown their laughter. “Just . . . finish the massage please. I’m not paying you for nothing.” “So you feel ready to take it a step further with Dissy?” French ponies these days, I thought. I rolled my eyes though, and decided to brush their remarks off. They always loved a good tease. But as I awaited my massage to resume, I found myself sitting face down without anything to relax myself. I sat up, removing my head from the face cradle with a confused glance to the twins. They now stood in the corner of the small room, whispering and giggling with one another. “Oh come on, girls!” I begged, “Stop fooling around and just hurry up with the massage.” The shared another look with each other before sighing. “Alright, Rarity. But only because we don’t want you putting in a bad review on the newspaper…” I cocked an eyebrow. “Whatever do you mean?” Aloe grinned. “Well… we were going to ask if you’d do a column reviewing our spa in the Ponyville Express.” “And for you to tell them about how great our spa is too,” Lotus added. I let out a groan. “You girls just always expect me to do favors for you, don’t you?” They both nodded. “Very well. But I want a free mudbath with Fluttershy tomorrow if that’s the case.” “Alright!” I let out a yawn as I opened the door to my boutique, calling out, “Sweetie Belle!” I heard a voice from upstairs reply, “Yeah, Rarity?” “Just making sure you came home today.” I heard a groan. “I only ran away once! When I was seven!” “Well excuse me for being a concerned, loving sister.” “BLEGH! Rarity, stoppit!” Rubbing a temple with a forehoof, I simply decided to ignore my sister’s antics as I made my way to the kitchen. Opening up the fridge with a spell, I looked around for things to put into the picnic basket, which lay somewhere in the mess of clothes I’d left on the floor. “Champagne, cheese and crackers, hummus, bread, daisy sandwiches- oooh, I have those imported grapes too! Perfect…” Gathering everything up with small incantations, they soon all hovered around as I shut the stainless-steel door with a brisk flick of my wrist, turning around to sort it all out on the table. I wonder if Discord will even like any of this... Oh, I knowthis isn’t very lady-like, but… Levitating a lemon over, I then retrieved a knife from the sink and sliced it in half, dripping it all over one of the sandwitches. Whilst doing this, I imagined all the faces he would make, and how he would lean over and pucker up… “Ahh!” My hoof was caught on one of the leftover paint cans from Sweetie Belle’s endeavors, and I found myself flat on my back on the floor. Pain shot up my shoulder. “Celestia-dam-” “Rarity, Mommy doesn’t like you swearing!” Muttering the curse under my breath, I let out a groan of repine and flopped over to my stomach, pondering just why my thoughts turned to rather… irregular thoughts. “Pucked lips? Leaning over? Hot, sweaty, bulging muscles on a french ponie as he whispers,’Come fly with me’, only it’s Discord?” Aloe and Lotus’ teasing came up. “You liiiiiiiike him~” I let out a scream at the thought. “Geez Rarity, you’re screaming as if you figured out you like Discord!” I screamed some more. “Yeah, that is kind of bad.” “NOT. HELPING.” My breathing quick and panicked, I jockeyed for a sitting position, placing a hoof over my chest. My heart was pounding like a caged animal, and I once more asked a one-worded question: Why? Why would I possibly hold affections for Discord? Why was the thought of it enough to make me scream? Surely Fluttershy had something going on with him, and it had never bothered me to think it before. Shaking my head, I looked back over to the mess I’d made on the kitchen floor, deciding to simply clean it up and continue my packing, pushing the thought out. The ponyville bridge, from where I stood, looked like a scene from a rococo painting as it lay there, the stream flowing underneath, the tiny numbers of ponies either crossing or just standing on the bridge, leaning on the rails whilst they enjoyed the lowering sun. Discord stood on the upper arch of the bridge looking at the water below as his tail gently swished back and forth. Okay Rarity, breath in, breathe out. There’s nothing crazy about this, just an evening with Discord. What could go wrong? Heh heh, knock on wood! I could feel all but goosebumps as I went to him, levitating my basket to the side. Please, for the love of Celestia, don’t let him call me Rares, I thought as I gently patted his shoulder, his head turning towards me. “You seem really eager,” I playfully teased while bearing a smile. “Well, It seems so,” Discord rubbed his head while a sheepish smile was plastered on his face, “I was simply so ecstatic to hear your nagging, so I came forty-five minutes early!.” Forty-five minutes early? If it was ten minutes early I would understand, disregarding the insult… But forty-five minutes? “That’s not a real answer, Discord. I can see you’re lying.” His nose returned to its normal length. “Well, maybe I was happy to hang out with you for once! Jeez, you never bothered to even send a letter once since our friendship started...” I grumbled. Here was the Discord I knew. “And since you made the effort to take me out with you I took the liberty to wear my best suit,” With a snap of a claw a black suit appeared around. I rolled my eyes and shook my head but I could not help but laugh on the inside. Why was I laughing on the inside? Am I supposed to be annoyed? Irritated at least or most? He then looked at me up and down. Is he… no, Rarity, shush! “And for once you haven’t worn a giant hat! Anyways, I thought that we could have an evening picnic for a start so I brought a blanket.” With another snap we both appeared on an empty grassy hill underneath a tree and a red plaid cotton blanket appeared. Right over my head. Why me? I thought as I struggled with fighting to get untangled from the blanket. Discord covered his mouth with his paw as he tried to stiffen a giggle. Why couldn’t looks put people in the Emergency Room? “Get this wretched thing off of me now!” “Oh dear, I’m terribly sorry. Allow me.” Another snap and the blanket was laid neatly on the grass. “Where are we even?” I looked around. All that was in view was grass and wheat that stretched to the horizon. Possibly a small red barn in the distance too. “Just a hill where I like to relax at times.” “You? Relaxing?” I scoffed, “Knowing you, this place should be raining chocolate or dogs.” “Hey, just because I am the master of chaos doesn’t mean that I am not an admirer of beautiful sights!” A single eyeglass poofed into existence on his left eye and a moustache poofed under his nose. I then heard him mumble something. “What was that?” “N-nothing, nothing! Just think about how, er, dog rain would look! Yes!” He placed his hands in view and shook his head. I could have sworn hearing the words and now I have two beautiful sights to admire. Maybe that was all in my head, though. What could he mean by that… Shaking my own head, I decided to switch the subject to something else. “I bought some things we could eat, anyways.” I unpacked the items from the picnic basket, laying them out neatly. I would admit that the dishes I had retrieved, even though they were packed in a mere basket, took form over function just a little. “Wow Rarity, even your dishes has the pazzzaaazzzzzz look in them!” Discord waved his hands in an arch path. I chuckled. “Aha. A laugh. That was a laugh. Fillies and gentlecolts we have a laugh!” He spread his arms out and sang. The ravens flew from the wheat towards the horizon. The horizon that was painted orange and red from the setting of Princess Celestia’s sun. Feeling myself begin doze off, I rolled my eyes as I lay back on the blanket. But they opened back up when I felt something hot and sticky on my shoulder, looking up to see Discord hovering over me with a malicious grin. My whole body went tense as I tried to figure out what to do, mind going blank. Why was he above me? Why was he smiling like that? And why was he… His lion paw tapped my forehead, and I blinked. “Tag. You’re it.” “...tag?” Jumping off of me, he bounded off into the field, yelling,”Glorious, fun tag!” Sighing, I leaned up, drowsily mumbling,”But I’m tired. Can’t we just eat?” “Yes, you can eat my dust!” To enhance his words, a small poof of dust appeared in front of my lips, and swirled around me, forcing me to close my eyes once more. “Discord!” Jumping up from the cloth-and kicking over some glasses in the process- I chased after him, while he giggled like mad and ran on all fours. Approaching another hill, he spread out his wings and flew up, with me jumping after him, only to fall face-first into the light green grass surrounding me. The chase was over, and now I was positively disgruntled, to say the least. Spiraling up in the air, he laughed as I coughed up dirt, soon diving back down and sitting beside me. “Ha! You should see yourse-” Grabbing a hoof-full of dirt myself, I gave my best throw, and it ended up leading straight on his face. Cracking a grin, I spoke out. “Even a lady will get her hooves dirty when it’s as hilarious as this.” I gathered more clumps of dirt and aimed it at his head. It landed with a splat directly covering his eyes this time.. His mouth twisted into a frown as he snapped his claw and a vacuum, already running, popped into existence as he vacuumed the dirt from his messy face. I fell back and laughed, failing to notice the enormous clump of mud flying at tremendous speed towards me. A splat and a laugh was audible. “Oh, It. Is. On!” Before long, what was seen as a peaceful meadow filled with rolling hills and serene atmosphere was now a battlefield with clumps of dirt, mud, and grass being aimed back and forth, and back and forth again. Somehow the psychological effect that dirt had on me was, well, not effective because I kept grabbing even more of the substance of forgotten abomination. I eventually forgot why I was doing it but I kept at it with simpers and guffaws till my bemire hooves and limbs cramped. I thought it was finally over as I took deep breaths and hunkered down. Oh how wrong I was. Expect the unexpected with Dissy. Especially when he instantly appears with a levitating pile and drops it- Did I just call him Dissy? Leaning up and just dodging the projectile aimed at me, I screamed at the top of my lungs. “DISSY! OH CELESTIA WHY! OF ALL THE POSSIBLE THINGS THIS IS THE WORST. POSSIBLE. THING!” “...” “Oh Rarity,” the draconequus said, snapping his claws repeatedly in front of me, “My dear, dear Rarity, snap out of it. I will throw another pile of… let’s say feculence at you if you don’t wake up.” At the mention of ‘pile’ I scooped up hoof-fulls of dirt and tackled him, sending him backwards with a filthy muzzle as I climbed onto his chest and made his face as one with the surrounding earth. I kept on doing so until I feared he couldn’t breathe, swiping some off his nostrils before my weary body gave in. “I… I haven’t had that much fun inyears,” I pant while laying my head on his chest for a while. “Maybe it’s because Sweetie Belle showed up. I don’t know.” “Well,” Discord had his mischievous tone again, “I’m kind of fancying your fun.” “What do yo-” I started but then I noticed. If anypony saw both of us in our current position he or she would think that we were a couple. My face turned beet but somehow I did not want to move. Was I tired? Was I just too occupied with hearing his heart beat? What is it, for Celestia’s sake! For my sake! “Well, somebody looks adorably confused on my chest,” a voice purred from below me. I tried to look down, but I felt a claw going through my mane. My head instantly froze, and I choked down the urge to scream ‘assault’, seeing as I usually never let anybody touch my mane. Even Aloe and Lotus would receive a scolding if they so much as grazed it. Just as I was about to say something though, I felt myself smack against the ground as Discord teleported away, laughing and wiping the mud off his face. “Oh, you should’ve seen that cute little flustered look you had!” I felt my face go redder. “You-I-My mane!” I then eeped as I realized Discord’s talons had been muddy, and too my horror feeling the wet, squishy substance in my hair. Looking up to him, I grinded my teeth savagely and let my mouth run tempestuously. “Nobody dares to mess with my mane, Discord! I work on it for hours, and even if you're slightly attractive you have no rights to mess with it! At all. Same with the fact that I may or may not like you! Mess with it again, Dissy, and I will literally gouge out your ey- …” I felt myself grow silent at the realization of what I’d just said.
Desire - Chapter 3Discord stared at me, eyes wide as beads of sweat rolled down his forehead. The same was for me too, as my muscles grew tense and immobile. I stared back at Discord. Discord stared back me. And in a flash of blinding white light, I found myself looking at the wide open sky, no draconequus to be found anymore. So that’s when I started screaming internally, unable to open my mouth to yell out loud. Or move anything at all to show my fear. I couldn’t help but wear a small smile as I trailed off to the thought Discord connecting with the rest of my friends after so much time of him refusing to do so. Collapsing onto my bed after a rough day of caring for the animals, I let a sigh escape from my throat as I closed my tried eyes. Sure, they’d always been friends with him since I was tasked with his reformation, but it wasn’t until Tirek came that everyone of them realized that Discord wasn’t all that bad; that he was a true friend. He’d done some bad, but he realized that in the end. I’d always known that, of course, but it just took them some time for everyone else to learn it themselves. Especially Rarity. So my grin grew wider at the fact that she had been the first pony to offer her time to him. Things have really changed… haven’t they? For the better too. That was when I heard a clattering noise come from downstairs, followed by the shrill voice of the very spirit I’d been thinking about. “Fluttershy, I have a code three hundred!” I sighed, my ears flattening as I forced open my burning eyes. Why would he possibly teleport here in the middle of a picnic if he didn’t do something bad? All good things must come to an end, a little voice replied. “But why so soon?” I put on my usual benevolent smile as the sound of his footsteps grew louder, hoping for the best as I lifted my head up just in time to see him practically explode into my room, a look of pure consternation on his face. I kept up the smile, though it was strained. “Ahem, uh, Discord, I don’t think we really went over a code three hundred…” I started off saying. “Well, It means the white one has hurt me!” I cocked an eyebrow. “What could Rarity possibly have done?” His face switched to disgust in an instant, and he let out a hissing noise. Scrunching his nose and narrowing his eyes, he then spoke. “She has admitted affections towards me!” I smiled. “Discord… what?” “AFFECTIONS Fluttershy!” Discord bellowed, the wind blowing my mane backwards. “She is showing feelings for me.” Discord crossed his finger and his claw when he quoted the word ‘feelings.’ “Rarity actually did that? As in, um, romanticly?” I raised an eyebrow as I said the words. “YES!” Discord slapped his paw upon his face, covering his eyes. I cringed upon hearing the loud impact of the paw on his face. “That’s... wonderful?” Discord slowly walked to the nearby wall and proceeded to pound his head on the wooden surface. Thunk, thunk, thunk. I heard him mumble incoherents too, only catching the phrase ‘having to spell everything out’.’ “A-are you okay?” Discord stopped planting his head on the wall and he looked at me with deadpan face. He took huge, deep breaths, corners of his mouth twitching. “No Fluttershy, I’m not okay. We went over this.” “We… we did?” He buried his face into both of his hands simultaneously, speaking through them. “Fluttershy, Rarity has said she likes me. I am a centuries old spirit of chaos who has caused mass devastation and has been imprisoned in stone for a little over a thousand years. I have seen ponies die before and watched their great great grandchildren do the same. I have played massive roles in both protecting and destroying not only Equestria, but the whole world. I have even taken down the very ponies that took me down milleniums ago. “And here’s a fashionista that likes me, wants to date me, and possibly more. What the heck am I supposed to do, Fluttershy?” He didn’t let me respond. “Because I have no clue! So no, Fluttershy, I am not, in any way, okay right now. Capische?” I tried to say something, but I couldn't. All I did was silently climb up into a sitting position on my bed, staring at him with wide eyes. “Do you see now?” “I… I think so.” He smiled. “Good. Now,should I date her?” I scrunched my nose, the question echoing through the room. As I formulated an answer, an uncomfortable silence passed between as I fumbled around with my hooves. “Well?” He spoke in a demanding voice, and I was forced to cough out an answer. “Er, why are you asking me? Rarity’s the one who’s an expert in these thi-... Oops.” He looked as if he was on the verge of crying. Was it sadness or madness? I could not decide. “Fluttershy, if you don’t help me now, I think I am going to start an uprising in Griffionstone, blow up a few building, and proceed to have them overthrow Equestria. Then, I will literally eat the Crystal Empire and violently vomit out my own internal organs before replacing them with potatoes.” “Uh, I don’t think you need to bring potatoes into this.” “Then what should I do?” he was on the verge of yelling. I sighed. “Discord, I’m sorry but this is something you.. you have to deal with on your own. This happened between you two, and it should stay between you two. Because what if I say something and it’s wrong? You don’t like it? I… I-I don’t know much about romance stuff, but I know that much.” I noticed Discord’s eyes. They looked dejected yet it cannot be helped. “Now go and poof yourself back and talk to her. You don’t leave a lady waiting alone on a date.” Discord’s shoulders slumped. He snapped his claws and he was gone. Just like that. The clearing was silent. No breeze blew through the leaves of trees, no ponies hooves clopped against the grass- not even a small mouse or bird was to be heard flying or scurrying away as the evening sun began to fade. Once my overall panic went away, it switched to a feeling of nervousness as I fell down onto my back, staring up at the cloudless sky. Where has he gone? Is going to tell the rest of our friends? Does he not accept my affections? Am I going to be brutally rejected? And I… “I actually like him. But how?” How? The question wouldn’t leave my mind. It refused to back down until it was answered. Yet there was no answer… Like so many of the questions I continued to have. It’s not like we’d ever hung out that much or… well, anything. What similarities do we share, what would make us click? What, what, what, what! My breathing was fast and I climbed up again, beginning to traipse back and forth. My ears were twitching and I was shaking my head, one of my forehooves rubbing a temple. My tail swished and my lower eyelid twitched, and my mind veered on the edge of insanity. There was nothing logical to explain anything I was feeling at that moment. Nothing. At. All. Romance? For Discord? It was something that seemed more like a loony dream from Pinkie Pie than real life. I turned around to continue the cycle of pacing once more, only for my hoof to catch on a stone buried in the grass. My body went hurtling forward and I let out a small scream before my muzzle was muffled with dirt and anything else to be found on the ground. That was when I snapped. Jolting upwards and coughing up whatever had entered my mouth, too galled to care what it was, I ground my teeth together as my probably bloodshot eyes shot around looking for something to simply smash on the ground or lob into the air with all of my might. I needed to vent, and without anyone to talk to or anything else, smashing was the best way no matter how uncouth. I quickly saw the area Discord and I had been picnicking, and before I could even register what my hooves were doing I was scuttling towards it at near light speed, narrowing my eyes while putting on my best damnable smile. I felt mad. Insane. Flummoxed, for lack of a better word. Why did I like Discord? Why would he just leave me like that? I came skidding to a halt as I practically pounced onto the basket laying in the middle of the blanket Discord had laid down, almost tearing it open with the force of my magic as I carelessly tossed the things I’d worked so hard to pack away. And that’s when I found it. I wanted to smash it. I wanted to burn it. I was inconceivably livid and I was thinking of every single way to destroy the blasted picture Pinkie had snuck of me and him together. But that’s when I stopped. My ragged breathing ceased, along with my pounding heart and grinding teeth. Everything stopped. Gently securing it in my muddied hooves, I lifted it up to eye level. Because what it showed was the reason why I’d ever want to like someone like him. I have no clue of the picture’s appearance in the basket, though I did vaguely remember Pinkie slipping something into the basket when she stopped me. But that did not mean it had no effect, as the memory attached to it resurfaced. There was a light drizzle caused by the pegasi, a faint pitter-patter of the rain against the windows being the only sound to be heard. I stayed indoors, not even thinking about getting my fur and my mane damp. I could not find my umbrella anywhere and I was sure that Sweetie Bell took it when she went to those friends of hers. I was stuck, unable to go out and at least say hi to one of my friends. But at least I was warm and dry. Knock Knock Knock. My ears pricked at the sound of someone knocking. Who could it be? I thought as I strained to rise from the couch and walk to the door. I pressed on the doorknob with my magic. “Hello,” I began, “How may I help… you?” I expected someone to be there but there was no one at all. I looked to the left and the right. No one. I took a glimpse up, thinking that it must have been a pegasus playing a prank. But the sky was relatively clear, with a few clouds being an exception. I finally looked down. There, lying on the ground was an umbrella. But it was not my umbrella. This particular umbrella was green. I picked it up and twirled it around while looking at the detail. There, I saw a folded note taped to the handle. I peeled the paper off, unfolded it and began to read. Get your gem covered flank over at Sugar Cube corner. You have an umbrella, so there’s no excuse. Signed, Totally not a pink earth pony. I rolled my eyes as I threw the note aside.Pinkie Pie can be really determined to get her way. I groaned as I picked up and opened the umbrella, closed the door behind me, and made my way through the slightly muddy road. I will need to go to the spa after this, I thought. The walk went by fast, seeing as my mind was preoccupied with thoughts of my next dress line clouding my head. I raised my hoof and knocked on the door of Sugar Cube Corner. I knocked once. Silence, besides the rain outside and the occasional pony walking by. I was about to knock again when the door opened slightly, a pink hoof outstretched. “What the-” Before I could finish the sentence it snatched my raised hoof and pulled me in. The place was dark as the door shut behind me. Why were the lights off? The only time when Pinke has the lights off is when she has a… oh yeah. I made no signs of movement or fright when the chorus of ‘SURPRISE’ echoed throughout each corner of the building, or when a pink face suddenly appeared directly in front of me. “Hiya Rarity,” the pink face squealed, “Glad you could make it! What took you so long?” “Hello Pinkie Pie,” I looked around and noticed all of the smiling faces. “I should have known.” “Known what? And why the long face? It’s your birthday. You should be smiling~” With that statement said, Pinkie Pie grabbed both edges of my mouth and pulled them upwards to form a forced smile. “AAAAHHHHHHH!” I screamed. Pinkie released her grip from my aching mouth. “That hurts.” “Oops, sorry.” I looked around at all the ponies around me, smiling with party hats on and cake in their hooves. It was certainly a nice gesture, but I nevertheless let out a sigh. “Pinkie, you know I don’t like surprise parties.” “I… forgot?” Pinkie released her biggest smile yet. I shook my head while chuckling slightly. “It’s fine, Pinkie. You know I love any part of yours anyways.” “Yippie!” She went bounding off somewhere amongst the crowd, and I let my smile fall, groaning. “How much frosting will there be this time?” I shuddered at the image of Applejack’s birthday party. “So many sprinkles…” But my flashback was soon broken by a flash of blinding white light. “Well, well, well, look what the pink candy-demon brought in!” There he was. Him. In all his comical glory. He wore a white face covered in polkadots of different colors and sizes along with a bright red artificial nose over his real nose. He wrapped his arm around my neck. “Hello Birthday girl!” the irritating draconequus caterwauled near my ear while not letting go of his grip around me. “Discord.” I struggled to push him away but he was not easy to budge. “Let go of me you brute!” “Not even a teensy-weensy bit happy to see me?” Discord wore a smile that can only be matched with the smile of Pinkie’s. I glared at him, my teeth clenched and my eyes narrow. Then I heard a click. “Perfect!” I turned to the direction of what was unmistakably Pinkie’s voice. She was holding a camera in her hooves. Rainbow Dash, Twilight, Fluttershy, and Applejack were crowded behind her as they tried to catch a glimpse of the camera’s tiny screen. Fluttershy and Twilight had the decency to cover their mouths to hide their obvious giggles. Whereas Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash fell on the floor in an intense laughter. “Oh no you didn’t.” My eyes widened at the camera. “Here, take a look Rarity,” Pinkie pie turned the camera around and I was able to view the screen clearly. The screen and the cursed picture. Sure enough, in the picture Discord’s arm was around me. He was smiling, while my eyes bore through his soul. “Ooh,” Discord looked at the picture with a magnifying lens near his eye, “You captured it impeccably. I would like a copy to keep if you don’t mind? “Sure thing!” “Delete that picture now!” I chased after the pink ball of energy but she had already zipped off. Finding her would be near to impossible. Even I knew that. “Couldn’t have been a better moment to take that picture,” Discord tapped me on my nose. “Wouldn’t you agree? “Discord,” I began to stomp away from the imperfect figure, “Go away.” Fluttershy didn’t realize I wasn’t going to see Rarity though. She didn’t know what love actually meant to me. No, chaos was too big of a concept for anyone besides me to understand anyways. I laid down on my cotton candy cloud, pounding it with my lion fist. Chocolate rain went flying upwards into my face, and I growled, hitting my first again to make it go away. “Dumb little marshmallow hor- gah pony!” My teeth grinded and a tooth flying out in the process before it grew back in a flash. My tail swished back and forth irritably and I squeezed my eyes shut until they hurt and I had to open them again. My friends. Friends. They all saw me as a hollow-skulled comedian who had no grasp on the concepts of love, intelligence, you name it- I was a bumbling fool in their eyes. “Not even Twilight matches up to my smart-y ness!” I tried to stand up and ended up doing a front-flip into the air, teleporting back to the cloud. “It’s just, unlike her, I want to have some fun,” I then whispered, furrowing my eyebrows as I watched an eagle dive down. “Fun…” the eagle’s feathers disappeared in an explosion of confetti and glitter, it’s wings turning into cotton candy. “Wait, no, Fluttershy would disapprove!” I changed the strawberry flavored M&M’s covering it’s body to grape. “She’ll like that much better.” But my fun and games wouldn’t last long as I tried to diverge from the topic at hand. I saw something white darting across the grassy fields below me as the eagle fell, and I brought the pirate-like telescope in my lion hand to my eye. It was her. Rarity. Crying. The telescope vanished. “I…” No jokes were to be made. I couldn’t up with one. There was positively nothing to cheer me up at that very moment. I was silent. The cloud vanished. The eagle was given its feathers back. My mind blanked, until a thought appeared in the darkness of my conscious. What about her? What about her and what shefeels? I sighed as I made my way towards the sobbing mare. How should I tell her? Should I let her down easy? Or should I be blunt with her? This should be easy to choose. Why am I having difficulty? It’s just Rarity. I snapped my claw. Face it now… might as well. “Rarity,” I teleported in front of her, and she skidded to a halt. Her makeup was running and she was biting her bottom lip to choke back sobs, tears running down her cheeks.She hadn’t been like that before… why now? She barely managed to stare at me before I noticed something hovering beside in a shiny blue aurora. A picture, from when I was with her at her birthday party. I tried to say something, but I couldn’t. My mouth was glued shut, and all I could do was stare back at her shaking eyes. I hadn’t really done anything, yet I was inclined to apologize… for what, though? I shouldn’t have left, but she shouldn’t have run away either… or should she have? This is why I’ve disregarded love… I’ve never been welcome to it anyways. Or maybe, should I apologize for what I’ve become? A heartless friend who leaves ponies when they need him. “I’m… sorry.” That’s when she started running again. But it was towards me, instead of away. Was that right? Shouldn’t she be calling me a monster, leaving me here to realize all I’ve done wrong? Everything was a blur from there when I felt something I should’ve never felt. I couldn’t move. It was wrong. But… My body froze when she wrapped her hooves around me and looked me straight in the eyes, before closing her own and pressing her lips against mine. Why? The feeling of her soft lips pressing upon mine was a feeling unlike any other. It left a warm, tingly, pleasant sensation on my mouth and I couldn’t help but press against her lips too as I closed my eyes. But, just like that, she pulled away, arms letting go.Her cheeks were tinted with a deep red and she turned her head away from me. Fast. Like a blink. One word raced through my mind though. Wrong. I didn’t even know if I loved her yet, but the look in her eyes… I felt pity more than anything. “I-I… I’m so sorry,” she whispered ever so softly. Her ears were drooped. Her eyes were tightly shut and tears were pouring through her eyelids “Rarity?” I placed my claw under her chin, turning her head to face me. “Please look at me.” She ever so slowly opened her eyes, head hung low yet I could see she was looking up. At me. I saw her then look away, my claw leaving her face as she climbed up to all fours. She was going to run again. So I grabbed her forelegs, and she let out a small yelp as I pulled her into a soft embrace. I felt her hooves encircle me tightly. I heard muffled sobs. “Rarity,” I stopped the hug and looked at her face. But her face was different. She was smiling. And what a smile it was. “T-thank you.” But did I love her?
Discorded - Chapter 1Chapter 2 Our cutie marks were not flashing. There were no current invasions that required our service. Pinkie Pie was not hosting another one of her ‘welcome to ponyville’ parties for any stranger. So, that made me wonder. Why didTwilight formally request me to meet at her castle? No clues were left when she instructed me to meet her there other than the others’ supposed attendance, and she left in a bit of a rush before I could ask a quick question. It happened so fast I had to wonder if it even happened or if it was all in my head... As I slowly trotted up the cobblestone path to Twilight’s tree castle, I thought of all the possibilities for our summons. What it could be. Surely there was no ‘emergency’ friendship ruination. Maybe Twilight wanted assistance? But why so formal about it? Further up the path I caught a glimpse of Applejack as she too galloped towards the direction of the castle. “Applejack!” I called out to her. Applejack’s ears pricked as she turned her head towards me, slowing down to a jog. “Wait up!” “Howdy Rarity!” she greeted me with a toothy smile and a wave as I walked faster to catch up with her. Not too fast though, as I did have a level of elegance and grace to uphold. “How’re ya doing this fine day?” “All right, thank you.” This day was indeed fine, to say the least. The weather ponies had cleared the skies of all clouds, letting Celestia’s sun shine down in all its grandeur and splendor. It was not too hot though, and left us room to breathe and sweat-free. It made the morning’s dew coruscate on the neatly trimmed grass placed on either side of the path, and gave off a rather cheery feeling. Birds chirping, ponies smiling- all of that.As for the bright blue sky, it provided a spectacle worthy of getting lost into, deep and vast like the ocean. Seeing as neither of us had diverged to different paths yet, Applejack was inclined to say, “Let me guess, Twilight called ya too, didn’t she?” “Yes she did. Have any idea about what it could be?” She shook her head. “Enope. Ah guess we just gotta wait till we get there. Discord knows though, Twilight has been a bit jumpy recently.” Applejack glanced to her right. “Speak of the devil,” she pointed, “there’s Fluttershy. And Discord’s with her.” I looked over to the direction where Applejack was pointing and sure enough Fluttershy and Discord were walking towards the castle as well. And by the look of it I would say that the two were enjoying an interesting conversation. Fluttershy was laughing while Discord made motions with his right paw and his left bird limb. “Ugh, Discord,” I sighed as I watched the duo. “I know we forgave him for betraying us when Tirek was around, but I’m still not fond of him. He’s got something peculiar going.” Applejack looked at me, her right eyebrow sticking up. “Now what in tarnation do ya mean, sugar cube? He hasn’t given any trouble since that incident and that was a while ago. I can tell he’s learnt his lesson, and that’s coming from the mare that can smell a lie a million miles away. It’s about time too if ya ask me.” I continue to cavil anyways though. “I know, but he still makes me unhinged. Especially when he calls me ‘Rares’.” My mouth twisted into an irregular shape as I spat out my newly given nickname. “I don’t like it when he calls me that at all.” “I know Rarity, but it’s his way of being nice to you. He’s at least making an effort. Ya gotta give him credit for that.” I know my whines are becoming painful to Applejack by now, but I continue my protesting. It seems the stubbornness of both her and Rainbow Dash has truly began to rub off on me. “I see your point,” I admit, “but I wish he would just quit it. He’s such a bother!” I proceed to sigh as I rub my eyes with my hoof. I then let out a yawn. “Excuse me, dear. Just tired.” Designing the next lines of fashions is certainly a wonderful job, but it can take its toll. Migraines are no stranger to me while trying to search and pull scraps of ideas from my mind and connect them together like a puzzle. It is no easy task, and Discord’s antics along with the name he dubbed me were not helping. Not one bit. Nevertheless I continued up the road in silence. Applejack simply shrugged as she shook her head and walked on. But after a few minutes of silence I could see it had crawled under her skin, and soon enough she spoke up. “Rarity,” Applejack said. I looked up. She was not looking back at me but I could see a bit of her face. She knitted her brows and her mouth held a Lilliputian scowl, eyes partially closed. She took a few breaths before she continued. “I think ya should give Discord a chance.” “What do you mean? I tolerate him-” “Yes, you tolerate him.” Applejack snapped as she stopped dead in in her tracks, turning towards me. “But that’s not enough. You need to give him a proper chance. And I mean a real chance.” “I don’t know,” I murmured as I looked down at the tiny pebbles that lay scattered on the track. “Look, Rarity,” with her hoof Applejack lifted my head, voice softer than before. “Rainbow Dash still drives you nuts at times, but you two are friends, right?” I was taken back by the remark. “Yes, of course we are!” “Exactly! So you could do the same with Discord. Right?” I walked on without an answer. Could I really do the same? Could I gain and maintain the same level of friendship as I had with Rainbow Dash and the others with Discord? Even after the things he did? I was not quite sure. With that thought in my head I continued my way to the castle in quietude. I simply could not come up with an answer for the time being. We soon arrived at the castle where Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Discord, and Twilight were already waiting. “Hey Rarity, hey Applejack!” Twilight greeted as I entered the throne room. Even though I have been in here many times it has never failed to steal my breath away every time. “Glad you showed up. Pinkie Pie couldn’t make it because she and Maud had a trip planned.” “No problem, Twilight. I had some chores to do, but I could spare a few hours or so for you guys,” Applejack responded with a simper as she took a seat on her throne. I followed suit. “What’s going on?” “Well,” Fluttershy spoke barely above a whisper while we strained our ears to listen, “um Discord wanted to tell you girls something. That’s why Twilight asked you here.” Well that’s peculiar. All eyes turned to the draconequus who, quite surprisingly stood without a sound next to Fluttershy’s throne. He seemed almost sad as he tilted his head down to the ground, scratching away idly at the marble floor. “So,” Rainbow Dash said, “what’s going on? Why’re we here?” His attention was caught. Ears perked up, he looked over to Dash’s throne, where she sat cross-armed. “Well, I just think that I’m not, well, appreciated that much.” Discord closed his eyes and also crossed his arms while he pouted. “Discord, what’re you even talking about?” Discord flattened his ears and growled as a reply to the rainbow-maned mare. “With that attitude, why should I tell you?” There was the childish draconequus I knew. Throwing her arms up in the air, Dash turned back to Twilight with a look of annoyance. “See? This is why we don’t take Discordseriously!” I merely sat there in silence as the scene played out, though I couldn’t say I didn’t agree with Rainbow’s opinion. Twilight rolled her eyes. “Dash, Discord’s one of us now. And while me may be acting juvenile, we have to take him seriously, or else how can we call ourselves his friend? How can we call him a friend?” Rainbow grumbled, nodding back to Twilight. “Yeah, I guess.” Though she still shot a death glare at the draconequus, who smugly grinned back before untwining himself from Fluttershy’s stone chair. Clearing his throat, he began to speak once more. “Alright, alright. All joking aside, I… I just feel that ever since I, well, disregarded what was right and what was wrong with the Tirek… thing, I’ve felt as though ponies have pushed me away.” Everypony besides Fluttershy and Twilight had their jaws drop the ground, especially me. It was rare that Discord actually spoke pensively, even in little bits like this, and we were shocked to say at least. “They look at me like… like I’m a monster. Like I’m an animal needed to be put back in his cage. I… I know I’m a goofy, crazy creature. I’ve done wrong, but does that mean it’s okay to ignore what I’ve done right? I understand that I really messed up with Tirek.” He shot a glance at Rainbow Dash. “And I get that it’s hard to take someone like me seriously. But, if you’d just listen to me now, I… I need everypony to see that I’m really trying to be a good guy. I understand my mistakes, and I’m trying to learn from them. That I can be serious. Pinkie Pie’s a goofball but you all understand that she’s not a foal. She’s mature. An adult. So, why can’t you do the same with me? Have everypony do the same with me? I’m sick of being the untrustable clown of this town. I want to be looked at in the same way everyone else is.” Now it was time for all of us to be dumbstruck. Either Discord was being Discord and he planned his little speech in front of a mirror, or he really meant what he said. But then again, didn’t he just say he was sick of ponies thinking just that? “Wow. Okay Discord,” Rainbow Dash lowered her head and she spoke noticeably calmer than before. “I’m sorry. But, what are you really asking for?” “I just…” He sighed. So much sighing today, it seemed. “...want to do the same things you do, to have fun the same way you have fun, to make jokes and laugh the same way you make jokes and laugh. But I really to share the same friendship with you the same way you all share your friendship with each other. It’s a step to acceptance.” I never thought for once in my mind that Discord could say something with such heartfelt meaning. That he could be genuine. Maybe Applejack was right. Maybe he really was trying to make such an effort to create a bond with us. Maybe I’ve been too cold to him. I breathed in, mentally preparing myself for what was to happen next, Okay, Rarity. I’ll give him the chance he deserves. It is the least I can do. “Well Discord,” I rose from my throne and swiftly hopped down to the ground with a small clop and stood right before the draconequus. His shoulders were slumped and his head was lowered. His aura was obviously different from before; I could detect no mischief. “You can start with me. Would you like to spend time with me tonight?” I could clearly remember the astonished faces portrayed from my friends. Even Discord’s jaw was dropped and his eye were wide open. I let out a tiny smile, though kept my posture stiff and boss-like. “D-do you really mean it Rares?” “Ha ha, Discord. As long as you don’t call me that.” I mock laughed as I threw him a death glare which in my mind promised eternal pain if he did not comply. Discord’s face froze. “Yes Ma’am. Understood.” Discord snapped his fingers and a military helmet appeared atop his head as he saluted. I rolled my eyes as I shook my head.Hmm, there’s been a lot of that too... “Good enough. Anyways, I was thinking a picnic of sorts. But I wont be free until later tonight. Let’s go with six o’clock. Meet me by the bridge. Okay?” I wasn’t going to waste time with small talk. I wanted to get straight to the point. This was to make Discord more welcome, and help with the rest of the town accepting him once more.Help with our little group becoming more accepting towards him. Discord grinned. “Gladly.” Then, with a flash, he was out. “Um…” Applejack was the first to speak up. “Not to be blunt, but did that really jus’ happen? Rarity’s gonna hang out wit’ Discord?” My proud smirk switched to a glower. Twilight was equally surprised though, and gave a confused look to AJ. “Er, it seems so.” Fluttershy was the only one wearing a confident smile among us. “I think it was very kind of Rarity to step up for him.” I couldn’t help but grin goofily at the comment. “Ahm kinda shocked to be honest,” Applejack gave Rarity a warm smile. “But Ah’m really proud of you for doin’ it too. Didn’t think you had it in ya.” She then looked around the room. “I think I could say I’m proud of all of us today too.” But soon Dash was quick to speak up. “Pft, Rarity was the only one to speak up! None of you did anything! Not even you, AJ!” I was ready to defend Applejack as I looked at Rainbow irritably, but I was beat to it. “Ah don’t know what’s got your panties in a twist Dash, but you were against Discord at first! At least the rest of us were willing to sit down and listen to what he had to say like good friends!” “...but I’m not even wearing panties…” “It’s a metaphor, dang it!” “Girls!” It was Fluttershy who spoke up this time. Everypony had hushed themselves as an eerie ringing filled the room, all eyes on her. Fluttershy twiddled with her hooves. “You two need to stop your bickering. We all did good today, and we’re really making progress with Discord. Especially you, Rarity.” I beamed at the praise. “But that’s not the point. It’s understandable that Rainbow Dash was a bit, well, suspicious. But she knew when she messed up. You saw that she regretted what she said after listening. And now it’s time for both of you to say sorry to each other.” Fluttershy crossed her hooves. Applejack and Rainbow Dash glimpsed at each other while they both let out awkward laughs. “Uh,” Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her head, “I’m sorry. I guess I shouldn’t have flown off the handle like that. That wasn’t cool of me. Twenty percent less cool, to be exact.” “Well... Ah’m sorry too sugarcube.” Applejack removed her stetson. “Guess I shouldn’t have started pointing hooves like that. Are we good now?” Rainbow Dash smiled. Not one of her smug smiles, but a true, honest smile. “Yeah, we’re cool.” “Well,” Twilight said from in between the two, “since Discord left, now what should we do?” “I don’t know about ya’ll, but Ah got chores to do back at the farm. Granny’s gonna start nagging in my ear if ah don’t get back soon too. Guess I’m heading out now.” With that Applejack took her leave, hopping off her own throne and heading out the door. “I was reading the new Daring Do book you gave me yesterday.” Rainbow Dash told Twilight, “I think I’ll head back how and finish it. Right now she’s in an abandoned is-” “Don’t tell me!” Twilight covered her ears as tightly as she could. “I haven’t started reading it yet. I don’t want any spoilers.” “Oops, hehe. Well, I’m gonna head out. Also need to go rig up a prank in Pinkie’s house while she’s gone... um, you didn’t hear that. See ya!” Rainbow flew out through the nearby open window leaving a colorful path behind. “Well, Twilight, it seems we all have things planned, so I’ll see you tomorrow then. I think I’ll stop by Aloe and Lotus for a massage or something in the meantime.” “Yeah. That sounds nice.” She then cavorted off her own throne, doing a spin in the air before landing gracefully on all fours. “I think I’m just going to go ahead and enjoy the time I have without paperwork!” We both shared a laugh. “Yeah, I should be leaving soon. I also have next season’s fashion to work on, and I must make it perfect enough for the Canterlot Showroom next month. And I have to prepare for the evening with Discord. I have to find something perfect to wear and-” “Well don’t let us stop you,” Twilight was in the process of shutting me out through the door as I found myself floating in the air. “Let us know how it turns out. Byeee.” With a playful grin Twilight shut the door and dropped me on the ground. I rolled my eyes and stepped to all fours, leaving to the direction of my house as I daydreamed about what to wear and how Discord and I would casually chat. Strangely, I could not wait.
